In America, the winner takes all.

Chapter 196 Exploration and Emergency Stop
Without the support of the strong schools in the SEC league, the so-called "national championship" is obviously not convincing.

If the NCAA wants to implement a college national championship, it must have the support of the SEC's top schools. Alabama, which was punished for recruiting violations, became the NCAA's choice.

If Alabama does not agree, it will inevitably encounter more severe suppression by the NCAA. Ethan and the football volunteer who accepted the inquiry are just the beginning.

Of course, this is also related to the fact that Alabama itself is not very rule-abiding, and it is not "innocent". However, this kind of thing is also a common problem among major powerful schools, especially those in the southeast.

These universities are often ranked around the top in the country and are not as attractive to students as first-class elite schools. Moreover, the fanatical rugby atmosphere in the South requires teams to get good results. Over time, they gradually embark on the path of "gray recruitment."

Including the hostess program, and even those Crimsonettes, golden girls, Rebelettes, Georgettes, Aggie Sweethearts who dress up in distinctive styles, are all victims of this recruitment system.

As for athletic directors like Bob Boone, they can neither change this situation nor control their own destiny.He could only wait silently for the Sword of Damocles above his head to fall.

However, he met a special young man.

"Is there a possibility that since Alabama has not agreed to secretly cooperate with the NCAA, your position will still be retained?" Ethan asked.

"There is no chance at all. I always have to have someone take responsibility for the negative news about the school."

"Of course, but maybe you shouldn't be the one who takes responsibility, because at that time, you were doing things that were more important to the school..." Ethan smiled.

"More important things?"

Boone looked particularly confused.

Originally, Boone just called Ethan over to state the current objective situation. After Ethan's questioning, he said a few more things.Originally, the time he had reserved for this conversation was 15 minutes, but by the time Ethan walked out of his office, it was already noon that day, and the conversation between the two lasted for a full three hours.

So much so that when Ethan walked out of the athletic director's office, he saw several other sports staff who wanted to report to him standing outside the office.

Ethan begins to look forward to what will happen when Grace comes to Alabama...

·
"LSU has done well this year. It has only lost one game against Florida, and its record is the same as Tennessee. But Tennessee is a team in the eastern half, and LSU is a team in the western half. In other words, he is Our most direct competitor, if we lose to LSU, let alone the SEC championship, we won’t even be able to win the Western Conference championship.” Eugene said to those gathered during afternoon training time.

The competition system of college football can be called "cruel" in a sense. Two universities in the same league only have one chance to compete each year. If it is a university outside the league, it may take more than ten years or decades to compete. It will happen once, and the outcome is only divided into one game, so for any team, there is no so-called chance to make up for it.

"We have sufficient preparation time for the confrontation with LSU. The coaching staff will develop special tactics for LSU. Before that, the second-level coach Curley will give you a detailed introduction to LSU." Head coach You King took a step back, and at this time Curley, the second-level coach in the crowd, stepped forward.

Curley previously served as head coach at two universities, the University of Mississippi Rebels and the LSU Tigers.

There are two tigers in the SEC, one is the Auburn Tigers, and the other is the Louisiana State (LSU) Tigers.

Likewise, there are two Bulldogs in the SEC, one is the Mississippi State Bulldog and the other is the Georgia Bulldog.

Alabama has a bye against the University of Georgia this year, otherwise, Ethan might run into his old teammate Cook.

The remaining three teams, Alabama, will have to collide with each other one by one.

"In my opinion, LSU is very experienced in defending high-altitude passes. The pass success rate of many team's quarterbacks will drop significantly when facing them. This can also be reflected in the data of this year's LSU game. Therefore, Our tactics in the next game should focus on running the ball." Curley pointed out the tactical focus of the next game - running the ball.

"Besides, in addition to the well-known running back, our team also has a typical dual-threat quarterback." Curley looked at Ethan at this time.

Ethan's several previous returns and his sensitive running of the ball against the Tennessee Volunteers have allowed the team to see his excellent escape ability and unparalleled speed.

Even if only compared from the perspective of running the ball, Ethan is not weaker than several running backs in the team.

But according to Ethan's self-perception, after entering college, the number of times he ran the ball has actually decreased significantly.

The main reason is that the physical fitness of college players is obviously a higher level, and Ethan is not as confident as he was in the past.Moreover, he did not want to overexert his body, but could face all future games with ease. Running the ball would obviously make him more susceptible to injury. Various factors combined, and Ethan reduced the number of running the ball.

At this time, Eugene looked at another special coach in the crowd - Ivey Williams.

He and offensive coordinator Woody belong to the same type of person. He doesn't talk much but has a strong research spirit.

"Ivey, during this period of time, you will be responsible for Ethan's running of the ball in these few days." Eugene arranged a brand new task for Ivey.

Ivey nodded and accepted the task without saying a word.

As several coaches finished their lectures, today's training officially began.

"Let me tell you, your running skills are very poor." Ivey looked at the young man standing in front of him, half a head taller than him, and said bluntly.

"Really?" Ethan laughed. This was the first time he heard someone commenting on him like this.

"One hundred percent correct." Ivey looked at Ethan expressionlessly, and he decided to let the young man lower his posture.

Instead of being praised by everyone like now.

Otherwise, the higher you hold it, the more painful it will be when you fall.

"But I feel like there aren't many people on the Alabama defense who can stop me running the ball in one-on-one situations." Ethan didn't accept Ivey's point of view.

"What you said is correct, but your running the ball only relies on your speed and physical impact. How about I ask the question in a different way. Can you ensure that in three years, even five years, or even ten years? Can you still run as fast as you did today?”

According to normal logic, of course it is impossible.Those "middle-aged" quarterbacks in the NFL often give up moving and become output points.

"I was just like you ten years ago, but with a serious leg injury, my football career ended completely." Ivey shook his head.

I didn’t expect that Ivey, who has always been taciturn, would have such a past.

"You have to understand one thing. Running backs are not sprinting, but long-distance running. Otherwise, they will only be regarded as consumables on the court. Only running backs who can do this are real running backs." Ivey whispered.

"Abandon the running method that relies too much on the body, use more scientific technical movements, and always maintain good running habits at any time. These are not things that happen overnight, but require long-term persistence. What I can teach you is actually It’s not much, let’s start with exploring.” Ivey said.

Tanbu Ethan has seen it before, Flea was using it in high school.

However, at the time, Ethan felt that it would slow down his movements, so he adopted a more intuitive running method.After Ivey's analysis, Ethan can now realize the necessity of "scientific running method".

So he was more than happy to start with the basics.

The so-called probing step is a common action for confronting a defensive player. It continuously probes forward from one direction and is always ready to change directions according to the opponent's reaction. If combined with observations such as "hip rotation", the defensive player can be Playing around, of course this is the ideal state.

Ethan seemed a little uncomfortable at first, after all, this went against the habits he had accumulated before.Forced changes require some adaptation time.

"Just the most basic steps may take two to three days to adapt to. I met you a little too late, Ethan. If we met earlier, I could teach you more." Ivy shook Shaking his head showed pity.

He is not Ethan's first teacher, and all he can do now is tinkering.

"No, it's not too late at all." Ethan shook his head.

Next, Ethan showed strong adaptability with practical actions.

In the next two hours, Ethan gradually became accustomed to the rhythm of probing through many attempts.

"Let me try." Seeing this, Sean Alexander came directly to Ethan and wanted to compete with Ethan 1V1.

The two began to face each other. Ethan stood with his feet apart, took out his right foot first, continuously stepped forward, left and right, and quickly bypassed the right side after a series of fake movements. Sean Alexander even touched the corner of Ethan's clothes. Didn't catch it.

"This..." Sean Alexander fell into deep thought, and suddenly discovered that Ethan was actually faster than himself.

Ivy on the side nodded frequently, but he didn't expect Ethan to get familiar with it so quickly.

"Now that you've learned how to step, it's time to teach you more advanced ways to run the ball."

"When you hold the ball, you like to confront the opponent head-on. In fact, it is not necessary in many cases. Why not try to pause? Variations at critical times can often catch the opponent off guard." Ivey pointed out the key point. .

Ethan tried it, and it had a completely different effect than before.

Facing the same defender, using this kind of sudden pause is often more effective than a frontal charge.

Although they are all small details, when put together, they can make your rushing efficiency higher.

Finally, Ivey even gave a detailed list, accurate to the specific games, allowing Ethan to observe the running rhythm of these famous running backs in detail.

In the remaining days, Ethan has been training with Ivey, constantly trying to run the ball, especially related to pace...

"After these few days of training, I think you have a new understanding of running the ball. I heard that other coaches have given you a corresponding test..." At the end of Friday night's training, Ivey called Ethan to the front.

"I'm quite interested in this matter. It's a good opportunity to measure your gains, but in my eyes, the yardage is not representative. Running the ball requires you to make excellent responses at the most critical moment. This It's exactly the same as the quarterback's pass, so the test I set for you has nothing to do with the number of yards, but the key breakthrough... How about touching the zone three times with both feet in the next game?" A smile appeared on Ivey's face. .

·
"This is Alabama." On the weekend, Ethan, who was driving his car, noticed from the corner of his eye Grace who turned to look out the car window at the local street scene in Alabama.

Grace saw a desolate and dilapidated scene on the outskirts of Tuscaloosa.

"That's good, at least it's not as confusing as Los Angeles." Grace reacted from the initial shock and turned to Ethan with a smile.

"It allows you to focus on your football training."

"Speaking of which, regarding football, there is an important thing for you to come here this time." Ethan talked about the dilemma of the school's athletic director, the NCAA's punishment against Alabama, and the current situation in Alabama.

"Oh, I knew it would be up to you to ask me to come over." Grace then realized that coming here was more than just a private meeting.

About four or ten minutes later, Ethan and Grace parked their car in front of Bob Boone's house.

Bob Boone came out and welcomed the two warmly.

"Beautiful lady who came all the way from California, I have prepared dinner for you two." Boone shook hands with Grace enthusiastically.

"Let's talk about the bowl game." Grace was obviously more interested in this matter.

"It's very simple. There is a high probability that the NCAA will not let Alabama participate in any bowl games. By then, Alabama may have to face the dilemma of having no games to play." Boone said.

Since the NCAA is not prepared to allow Alabama to have a bowl game, then Alabama will create its own bowl game.

However, nominally speaking, the school cannot participate directly. This requires an independent partner, which preferably has relevant operational experience.

So Ethan recommended to Boone a little-known sports operations company in California.

In Ethan's narrative, this company maintains cooperation with many high schools across the country, maintains in-depth cooperation with the California High School Sports League, and undertakes many CIF events. Behind it is an education group, which has a huge network of contacts in the California education industry... All in all, the best partner for Alabama.

As for Boone's role, he was the first to contact Grace on behalf of the school.

"You must come up with a mature event plan, including the venue and scale of the event, as well as contact with the five major leagues, and successfully obtain the lottery." Boone put forward his own requirements.

"Sign, what sign?" Grace showed confusion.

"I have to admit that college games are different from high school games, but you have hosted the California Open many times, so you should have some understanding of this aspect." Boone frowned slightly. Through the exchange just now, he discovered that the other party was not familiar with rugby. His understanding of amateur events was very shallow, which made him doubtful.

"California Open?" Grace showed even stronger doubts than Boone.

Soon, Boone discovered that the person in charge of this company did not have as much experience in event preparation as Ethan claimed.

Grace also discovered that Alabama was not prepared to provide ordinary commercial sponsorship consulting services with her, which was completely different from what Ethan said before he came.

"Ethan, what on earth is going on?" The two of them looked at Ethan together.

(End of this chapter)