American TV series: Starting with exploiting young Sheldon

……

After boosting morale, Mike dropped the football and led his team toward midfield.

As Mike passed by Tucker, who was still lying on the ground, he glanced at him sideways and said casually, "Tank? Ha~"

The slightly mocking laughter was neither too loud nor too soft, just loud enough for everyone around to hear.

This action was tantamount to slapping Tucker hard across the face.

As his teammates helped him up, he watched Mike's departing figure, his eyes filled with anger.

Beep—, Beep—

After both teams reached the midfield and set up their formations, the referee blew his whistle twice in a row.

The first whistle was Austin's attack whistle. The second whistle was the end of the first quarter.

The match has become incredibly intense at this point. The two teams have combined for four high-quality offensive transitions in just twelve minutes.

For Austin, a long-established powerhouse, this performance was to be expected. However, the fact that a team from a small town like Melford could possess such a strong attacking ability surprised many spectators.

At this moment, many spectators gave a warm round of applause to the Melford team as they took a break for the next match.

As Mike walked back to the rest area, he unexpectedly saw a familiar figure there.

Aaron, with a bandage on his arm, was sitting next to Coach George with a smile on his face.

"Mike, you did a great job. I saw your playmaking too. If I'd known you were this good, I would have given up my quarterback position a long time ago," Captain Aaron joked, trying to sound casual.

It was clear that he had adjusted his emotions. He no longer let anyone see his dejected expression.

"Captain, you flatter me." Mike smiled and explained, "That offensive play just now wasn't directed by me..."

And that was indeed the case. Mike didn't deliberately direct the second offensive play; it all relied on the tacit understanding between teammates.

Morale is something that cannot be seen or touched.

Compared to Captain Aaron's considerate and gentle personality, Mike was more like a guide for his teammates through his actions.

Moreover, in today's tough battle against such a disparate opponent, Melford's players definitely need a strong leader.

So, Captain Aaron's statement isn't entirely wrong.

Seeing the team members' more determined expressions than before, Captain Aaron nodded slightly and said nothing more.

"Mike, Aaron and I have discussed it. For the next game, you can take the lead and use an aggressive, attacking tactic." Coach George took advantage of the break to finalize the tactics.

He then continued, "However, I also hope you understand that the Melford team is a cohesive unit. When necessary, I need you to learn to trust your teammates."

Coach George had noticed long ago that Mike was a bit selfish on the court. This selfishness isn't necessarily a bad thing, but as a qualified quarterback, he needs to consider more factors.

Learning to leverage the power of the team is also an essential skill for a quarterback.

“I understand, Coach.” Mike nodded thoughtfully.

……

The two-minute break passed quickly, and Mike, who had returned to the court, gathered the team together and explained his plan.

The general idea is to reduce defensive contact among the players, thus saving their energy for offense.

This approach is extreme and bold.

"Well, do you understand now?" Mike asked loudly after explaining his thoughts.

The team members exchanged glances, then turned their attention back to Mike and shouted, "Understood!!"

Melford's team knew the gap in skill between them and their opponents was too great. Rather than being worn down on both offense and defense, they decided to try Mike's unconventional tactic.

“Very good~” Mike nodded in satisfaction, then he gestured for everyone to put their hands together.

"One, two, three~"

"come on!!!"

……

At the start of the second quarter, Austin's quarterback made it to the end zone with little resistance in the first round of offense.

It was very simple; they got another six points for Austin High School.

The audience, who had expected the second quarter to be even more exciting, protested after seeing Melford High School's lax defense.

"What's going on?" Coach George looked completely bewildered on the sidelines. He was about to call a timeout to ask Mike if he was having some kind of mental breakdown.

Although the Melford rugby team was not as strong as their opponents, that's not how the game was played.

Coach George felt ashamed of his decision to give up the game in the second quarter.

"Wait a minute, Coach. Mike and the others might have their own reasons. Give them a little more time..." Aaron called out to Coach George, stopping him from calling a timeout.

The second quarter has only just begun, and calling a timeout now is definitely not appropriate. Coach George lowered his arm, but his gaze towards the court grew increasingly serious.

He's already reflecting on whether putting Mike at quarterback was a mistake.

Aaron, on the other side, also frowned. Although he was willing to believe Mike, he still couldn't figure out what Mike was up to.

Chapter 94 Emergencies

Next, on Austin's second attempt to score, the opposing quarterback easily scored again, earning two extra points.

Austin's quarterback, who scored two easy touchdowns, looked at Mike, Melford's new quarterback, with a strange expression.

The points were scored so easily that Austin's quarterback felt a little unreal.

However, Mike didn't seem to care much about losing the point. At this moment, he was already leading his teammates towards midfield.

After the exchange of possession, the two teams once again set up their formations in midfield.

Seeing Melford's strange positioning, Tucker scoffed, "What, realizing the gap in skill, you're giving up the match? For you, that's a smart choice..."

This time, the Melford players on the offensive end were positioned very close together, forming a compact formation.

If you look closely, you'll notice that all the Melford players are positioned with Mike at the center.

beep—

As the whistle blew, signaling Melford's attack, Mike grabbed the football and charged into the opposing team's territory.

The Melford teammates, who were close behind, quickly followed and helped Mike block the interference from both sides.

Realizing Melford hadn't given up, Tucker quickly shook off his entangled opponent and blocked Mike's path: "You're not getting past me!"

Tucker's best course of action here is to go up and take down Mike, using entanglement to stop his opponent.

However, having been humiliated twice by Mike, Tucker was now only thinking about revenge. So he crouched low and charged forward, ready to deliver a heavy blow to his opponent.

Tucker used to do this all the time, which is why he got the nickname "Tank".

He just chose the wrong opponent this time; Mike has never backed down from a head-on confrontation.

"Bang~"

Tucker, who hadn't yet picked up his speed, collided with Mike, who was rushing towards him at top speed.

"Ahhh!" With a cry of pain, Tucker was sent flying and rolled on the ground in agony.

Mike adjusted his pace, then shoved aside two opponents who tried to intercept him, and sped away.

In less than fifty yards, Mike rushed into the opponent's end zone in six or seven seconds.

Then, he calmly turned around and clapped and celebrated with his teammates who had caught up with him.

Just then, the stadium announcement came over the loudspeaker: "Melford, quarterback, intentionally injured a player with the ball; the point is invalid. Furthermore, the malicious injury is serious; he is ejected from the game..."

In a regular rugby match, there are six assistant referees and one referee on the field.

The sole referee will carry a microphone, which he can turn on to provide live commentary when necessary.

At this moment, the referee on the field has exercised this right.

The ruling was announced three times in a row.

Mike returned to midfield and saw Tucker lying on the ground next to a yellow scarf thrown by the referee.

To ensure the smooth flow of the game, when a player commits a foul but it does not affect the outcome of the offense or defense, the referee will throw a silk scarf on the spot.

The punishment will be announced after one round of attack and defense is over.

"How did I commit a foul?" Mike protested to the referee.

His previous offensive moves were clearly clean; although the force was a little too strong, they shouldn't have triggered a foul.

At that moment, Austin's head coach arrived on the field with medical personnel. After examination, Tucker, who was lying on the ground sweating profusely, was found to have two broken ribs.

The referee's meaning was clear: Mike's attack caused serious injury to his opponent and should be penalized.

"Protest!" Mike said, dissatisfied. "He injured our captain's wrist before, why wasn't he kicked off the field?"

Clearly, judging based on the opponent's injury did not satisfy Mike.

Moreover, this time Mike wasn't intentionally trying to injure his opponent. Who would have thought that this guy nicknamed "Tank" would be so fragile?

Seeing that the referee was about to uphold the original decision, Coach George, who was on the sidelines, hurriedly took a red handkerchief out of his pocket and threw it onto the field.

“I’m going to challenge Hawkeye!” George shouted as he stood up.

In rugby, each team's head coach has one opportunity to challenge the referee's decision.

Of course, the only chance to challenge Hawk-Eye will also deprive the team of one opportunity to call a timeout.

But Coach George can't worry about that now. Aaron has already been sent off, and if Mike is also sent off, then Melford Football Team will really be out of the game.

When George threw the red scarf, the audience understood what had happened. This act of challenging authority is one of the most enjoyable parts of watching a game.

Amidst the commotion, Coach George entered the arena.

He first patted Mike on the shoulder to calm him down before saying to the referee, "I challenge Hawk-Eye. I maintain that my player did not commit a foul."

In formal rugby matches, motion capture cameras are installed around the field to ensure the fairness of the game.

And every team's head coach has the right to request to see a slow-motion replay of each game.

Upon hearing Coach George's request, the on-site referee could only grimace as he accompanied both head coaches and others to the sidelines to watch the slow-motion replay.

Three minutes later, the referee's face darkened even more, and he took the microphone and announced the decision again.

Mike's offensive actions were clean, and he had no intention of intentionally hurting anyone; all previous calls were overturned.

Upon hearing the result, Melford's team all breathed a sigh of relief.

Coach George also took the opportunity during the re-decision to pull Mike aside: "What happened before? Why didn't you organize your players to defend when the opponent was on offense?"

To reassure the coach, Mike briefly explained his plan to him.

However, Coach George, upon hearing Mike's plan, was not reassured. Before he could say anything more, the referee came over and escorted him off the field.

On the other side, Tucker, still groaning in pain, was also carried off the field on a stretcher. Judging from the severity of his injury, he won't be able to play again this season.

With the injured player leaving the field, the game returned to its previous order.

Since the referee made a mistake just now, Mike's previous touchdown should also be considered a valid score.

The score was now 23-22, with Melford trailing by one point. However, they had one more chance to score.

The two teams moved to the five-yard line in the Austin end zone and set up their formations again.

Just then, little George crept up to Mike, gave him a thumbs-up, and whispered, "Mike, well done! You avenged Captain Aaron!"

Captain Aaron is a mild-mannered and easygoing person, and has always been well-regarded within the team. His previous injury and departure from the field caused resentment among many of his Melford teammates.

At this moment, Mike also sent the culprit who hurt Aaron to the field, which made all the team members feel very relieved.

Seeing the looks from his teammates, Mike quickly explained, "I didn't, don't talk nonsense!"

“I understand, I understand…” Little George looked at him with an understanding expression and went to his seat.

The other Melford players reacted similarly to him.

Seeing this, Mike could only say, 'You guys don't know anything.'

Although Mike had wanted to avenge Captain Aaron, he really didn't want to send Tucker off the court so quickly. Wouldn't it have been better to leave him on the court to suffer slowly?

beep—

Before Mike could think any further, the whistle blew for Melford's second point.