In America, the winner takes all.

Chapter 270 Change of formation; reversal (8-in- k)

As the countdown in the third quarter ended, the Rose Bowl score was locked at 17-30, with Alabama still trailing by thirteen points.

It can be said that the goal of reducing the score difference set by Ethan in the third quarter was not achieved.

With Michigan's defensive intensity, it will be extremely difficult to recover these points.

After the third quarter, everyone in Alabama gathered around the head coach to discuss tactics for the next quarter.

"No matter what, the breakthrough point should be on the Michigan offensive team. If Michigan cannot score even one point in the fourth quarter, there is a possibility of recovering the score." Desia Townsend, the captain of the defensive team this season, said My own opinion.

"Ethan, I'm afraid you have to interfere with Michigan's quarterback alone as a defensive player in the fourth quarter as a free agent." Defensive coach Mike DuBose looked at Ethan and said.

As a linebacker in the third quarter, Ethan originally wanted to target Tom Brady, but Michigan changed its quarterback in the third quarter, and the new quarterback Brian Griese was not like Tom Brady. Not only is he faster than Tom Brady, he is also quite experienced in dealing with blitzes.

This caused Ethan's position on the court to become very awkward, so he had to be replaced temporarily.

Mike DuBose meant to use Ethan as a freeback, a position Ethan had previously held.

Ethan did not respond immediately, but looked at the head coach Eugene who was standing next to him.

Eugene didn't question it, clearly agreeing with Mike DuBose's idea.

"Michigan's defensive team is the best among the five major leagues. It is difficult for us to get an advantage when attacking." Eugene shook his head. This is the only solution at present. Although this approach is very passive and can be said to hand over the initiative to Michigan, Alabama can't come up with a better solution now.

Seeing how insistent everyone was, Ethan could only shake his head.

"Even if you can defend Michigan's offensive team, the -point difference cannot be recovered by praying alone. More importantly, you ignore the offensive ability of Michigan's defensive team. Charles Woodson is returning this year. As the defensive player with the most yards, as long as the offensive team makes one mistake, Michigan only needs one ball to completely kill the game," Ethan explained.

In his opinion, betting on Michigan's offense is not a good decision.

"Then what do you mean..." Eugene thought.

"Since Michigan's defensive team is extremely strong, we will attack at the strongest point."

"Now is not the time to avoid its edge." Ethan continued.

The purpose of deliberately avoiding the area defended by Charles Woodson was to find breakthroughs from other directions. Now the score has proved that this strategy is a failure. Now we can only know that there are tigers in the mountains and go for the tigers in the mountains.

"But..." At this time, the two wide receivers on the team showed hesitation.

The reason why Alabama chose to abandon the path where Charles Woodson was stationed in the first place was not because the wide receivers could not get any benefits from Charles Woodson.

But Ethan had just thought of a countermeasure and raised his finger to point to a player standing on the outside.

"If Michigan can change the quarterback, why can't we? Let him be the quarterback and I will take on the responsibilities of wide receiver and face Charles Woodson head-on. This drastic change in offensive tactics, I I don’t think Michigan can adapt in a short time.”

At this time, everyone on the sidelines looked at Rice.

Even Rice himself didn't react and looked a little stunned.

Eason's intention was clear, let him be the starting quarterback for the final quarter of the Rose Bowl.

"Ethan, I think this matter still needs to be discussed." Eugene shook his head and immediately raised a question.

"Even if we have to change the quarterback, it should be Freddie." The quarterback coach also said.

"Ethan, Rice has no chance to play at all this season. As you said before, as long as the offensive team makes a fumble, Michigan will directly kill the game." The offensive coordinator also joined in the persuasion.

In short, the entire coaching staff disagreed with Rice as the quarterback in the fourth quarter.

"If we follow the previous tactical thinking, we are already sure to lose the Rose Bowl. In that case, why not give it a try. Besides, Rice and I had similar cooperation in high school. We have a tacit understanding between the two of us. It's still there. It's completely reusable, and compared to that, Freddy didn't have a similar fit with me."

"Of course, my choice is a bit reckless, and there may be room for discussion, so I have to ask for someone's consent..." Ethan neither looked at the coaching staff nor the other players, but at Rice.

"Rice, are you willing to shoulder the responsibility of helping the team turn defeat into victory?" Ethan asked.

Rice looked up and first looked at Freddy, the other backup quarterback standing next to him. The latter obviously didn't accept the proposal and shook his head subconsciously.

Rice then looked at the other team members, whose reactions were similar to Freddy's.

As for the coaching staff, everyone frowned, and they neither expressed approval nor objection.

Finally, Rice got a determined look.

Rice took a deep breath, closed her eyes, thought for a few seconds and then opened her eyes.

In a sense, Rice's eyes were as firm as Ethan's.

"I think I can do it." Rice said calmly.

"Okay, since the tactics in the last quarter are arranged like this... Woody, have you prepared tactics related to Ethan as a wide receiver?"

The head coach looked to the offensive coordinator.

On this side, Woody, before he could speak, heard the whistle for the game to resume.

Alabama spent too much time determining the tactics and had no time to conduct detailed discussions. All members of the offensive team had to return to the field in a hurry.

“I don’t know what tactical changes Alabama will make after its short adjustment. Will it continue to use the tactics in the third quarter, or use a new strategy... Wait! I noticed Alabama’s latest substitutions. Arrangement, my God, it looks like a rookie is actually the quarterback in the fourth quarter..." Keith quickly rummaged through information about Rice.

Even though as a commentator, Keith did a lot of homework on the players of both teams before the game, Keith knew nothing about the new Rice, and he never took this substitute seriously.

Fortunately, the relevant information was on the table, and Keith could quickly flip through it. After searching for it, he found the information about Rice at the end of the Alabama player information.

"Um... This player has 0 playing time this season and has no data. He just transferred to Alabama at the beginning of this season for reasons and received a pardon from the NCAA. Last year, he entered UCLA Branch branch, although he entered the squad, he also didn't get any chance to play... This is a blank slate player!" Keith's voice even sounded a little confused.

"Alabama has created a somewhat special historical record. Rice will be the first player to make his debut in the Rose Bowl."

"And it was in the fourth quarter, the most critical and stalemate part of the game. It was even the key quarterback position in the game."

"I don't know under what circumstances Alabama head coach Eugene made this choice. Was he preparing to give up the game directly? In any case, throughout the history of football, this decision has never happened before. This game There is a high probability that it will not happen in the future." Keith expressed his opinion.

This is really incredible!

Many people in front of the TV even wondered whether Alabama had "eat (the match-fixing)."

During the game, the audience was in an uproar about Alabama's choice, and many people felt puzzled.

"What on earth is Alabama doing?" some viewers couldn't help but complain.

In the box stands, the faces of the players including Pat and Adam who came to watch the game were also filled with incredible expressions.

They were racking their brains and couldn't figure out why Alabama would do this?

"Maybe this is the special tactic prepared by Alabama." Pat tried to find an answer.

But even he himself didn’t quite believe this “explanation”.

It's more of a suicide than a tactic.

"Maybe it's just Alabama that wants to end the game early. They have already admitted defeat." DiCaprio spread his hands, and he couldn't find a second explanation.

On the other side, Adam was lost in thought: "Alabama head coach Eugene's tactical style is known for his stability. This is definitely not his arrangement. It was Ethan. Ethan must have taken the initiative to ask for this."

As a common teammate of Ethan and Rice, Adam knew the two better and guessed some of the facts.

"If Ethan does this, he better hope the angry Alabama fans don't put him in a mental hospital after the game." Pat shook his head.

Everyone knows that Alabama fans are famous for their fanaticism. If they lose under normal circumstances, their skills will be inferior at best. Come back next year.

But if you lose in this way, it's not as simple as lack of strength, but active surrender.

This kind of desertion will make Ethan subject to unprecedented questioning! The reputation you built so hard will plummet.

In the next box, Giselle noticed the reactions of others.

Catherine and Mia kept shaking their heads. As for Lisa, she wanted to rush out of the VIP box.

"Ethan must be crazy." Lisa stroked her forehead, looking quite helpless.

If there was anyone at the scene who clearly supported Eason's decision, it had to be the Michigan players.

"I would call this the stupidest play in history," Michigan quarterback Doug Brian Griese said with a smile.

Tom Brady, who was standing not far away, had a solemn expression, obviously unable to find Ethan's motive for doing this.

The rest of the Michigan fans were in a frenzy, already imagining where they would be if they won the cup.

The same celebrations occurred in Michigan, in Detroit, in Ann Arbor, in residents' homes and in working-class bars, where workers in the Rust Belt cheered while drinking various alcoholic beverages.

"Michigan will become the first true national champion!" Many people have already determined it.

In stark contrast, many fans in Alabama turned off their TV sets angrily.

"This must be a conspiracy, bastard Ethan O'Connor!" Someone punched the TV in anger.

"Ethan has a close relationship with Rice, and he had an affair with Rice's mother. Apparently, Ethan felt that since he was going to lose the game, he might as well let his good son show his face on the stage!" Auburn, Alabama In a bar in the city, someone speculated that these people were all Auburn fans, and they didn't have any good feelings for Ethan, so they used their imagination to arrange it.

"Alabama is so pitiful. Being treated as a personal tool by a player makes me feel unworthy for the Alabama fans!"

In just a few minutes, with the fermentation of public opinion, the discussion has extended from inside the stadium to outside the stadium.

If he really loses, I'm afraid Ethan's various "dirty information" will be brought out and talked about.

·

San Francisco, inside a mansion in the Bay Area.

Steve Mariucci, then the head coach of the San Francisco 49ers, was watching the Rose Bowl game while participating in a conference call.

On the other end of the phone were team president Carmen Palesi, vice president and director of operations Dwight Clark, director of player personnel Vinny Serrato, and in addition to the three managers, there were also several team members. Scouting representatives, and analysts.

Although it is still the Christmas holiday, the 49ers' management is working overtime to discuss one thing in order to determine one thing after the Rose Bowl game, whether to include Ethan O'Connor on the future team roster.

As a "rich team" in the NFL, the 49ers have had the strongest quarterback in the world for nearly two decades.

From Joe Montana in the 80s to Stephen Young in the 49s, this has brought huge returns to the team at both the commercial and competitive levels. According to the team owner, Edward DeBarto, also known as the godfather Under Lowe's direction, the ers will continue to implement this strategy into the next generation.

The team's number one quarterback, Stephen Young, is 36 years old this year and his career has entered the twilight years. It's time to consider the next quarterback candidate, so Ethan, who made a killing in Alabama, entered the 49 in the view of management.

As this year's Heisman Award winner, there is no doubt about Ethan's potential. At the same time, as a Los Angeles native, and there is no home football team in Los Angeles, Ethan's joining will definitely allow the 49ers to open up the Los Angeles football market. No matter how you look at it, it is a deal. Good deal.

If it goes well, after the game, the management will send relevant personnel to contact Ethan O'Connor, and even if it is exchanged for draft picks in the next few years, Ethan will be brought to San Francisco.

But unfortunately, something unexpected happened in the fourth quarter of the game.

"What kind of stupid behavior is this? Is Eugene crazy? Or is Ethan O'Connor flooded in the head? Ignorant Southerners." 49ers head coach Steve Mariucci heard a nod from the other end. sound.

The speaker was Director of Operations White Clark.

"Steve, what do you think?" President Carmen Palesi asked the head coach.

"...The game is not over yet, is it? Alabama still has the possibility of winning, but I think we can suspend the plan to contact Ethan O'Connor first." Steve Mariucci stood from the perspective of the head coach , dissenting opinion.

Not only the San Francisco 49ers, but also the Colts, Cardinals, Bears, Ravens, and Rams who were last in each division last season, there are also senior executives and head coaches as well as corresponding analysts and scouts paying attention to this game.

Players who can reach the Rose Bowl have always been the focus of scouts on the team, and this year is no exception. These teams are at the bottom of each division this year and have higher draft picks in this year's draft.

However, compared to the 49ers management's focus on the future, they are still focused on players who are about to graduate.

Now, with Alabama's weird tactics, many scouts are no longer optimistic about Alabama, and even their regard for Ethan has dropped a lot. Many people have turned their attention to Charles Woodson.

·

Under the gaze of tens of millions of viewers, Ethan and the Alabama offense took the stage...

Ethan did not expect that his tactical arrangements would cause such a huge response. He just wanted to win the game.

The lineup at this time has not changed compared to before. The difference is the position of the players on the field. Ethan changed directly from quarterback to wide receiver, replacing Eddie George. He and Trent Dill on the field Fo formed a partnership, and standing behind the center as the quarterback was Rice.

"Michigan's defense is very fierce. If the opponent changes formation again and makes a blitz, I suggest you pass the ball directly." Ethan reminded Rice of the corresponding response method.

Rice nodded, but he did not show excessive nervousness, and even joked with Ethan.

"Ethan, after all, I still train as a quarterback every day, but you, after all these years, except when you first entered the Normans, you have never continued to be a wide receiver, right?" Rice reminded.

That's right, except for a time as a wide receiver when he was new to football, Ethan has not been involved in this position in the past few years.

And it was still on a critical occasion, facing the strong defensive Charles Woodson, the pressure can be imagined.

"Instead of thinking about you, it's better to think about how I will deal with it later." Ethan shook his head.

Everyone in Alabama began to line up, and the opposing Michigan defensive team also began to disperse. Ethan took a deep breath and stood face to face with Charles Woodson.

"You want to compete openly? Then come on!" Ethan said lightly.

"I will never let you or Alabama win the game." Charles Woodson looked at Ethan with unprecedented momentum.

Compared to others, Charles Woodson was not careless about Alabama's changes.

As Ethan's opponent, he could clearly feel that Ethan often made unexpected moves in tactics. What seemed like a stupid move might turn out to be a secret weapon. He also warned the other members of the defensive team in this way, and decided not to make any moves. A little carelessness.

As the game whistle blew, the moment the center kicked off the ball, Ethan had already shot out like an arrow.

This is a Z-shaped route that Ethan has used before. Charles Woodson ran hard and followed Ethan, while turning his head to observe Alaba's rookie quarterback.

Almost at the same time, Rice passed the ball directly.

"Watch Ethan!" shouted Charles Woodson.

When the quarterback passed the ball, Alabama's tactical intention was exposed, which was an unpretentious far-end bombing.

Compared to Ethan's long ball, which was as powerful as a cannonball, the angle and speed of Rice's long ball were a little worse, and even the landing point of the football was different from what he expected.

After taking a look at the flight path of the football, Ethan suddenly froze in place and then moved to the outside.

If it were at normal times, Ethan's escape action would be enough for him to open up a gap and get rid of the defense. However, Michigan's defensive team is different from other teams' defensive teams. Ethan was not escaped at all, but Follow Ethan closely.

Including Charles Woodson next to Ethan, the freeback on the other side, the safety guard in the back position, and another cornerback on the outside who was originally marking Trent Dilfer.

The four defensive players form a chain, and everyone is taken care of at the near end, middle end, and far end.

When Ethan rushed forward to catch the ball, he was double-teamed by two people. In the end, he had to watch the football fall in front of him.

Failed to catch the ball.

"You don't think you can break through Michigan's defense this way, do you?" Charles Woodson felt Ethan's contempt.

No matter how you look at this tactic, it seems a bit contemptuous of Michigan.

"No one never makes a mistake," Ethan said, looking at him.

In the second offense, Alabama still used a simple and straightforward "father-son connection." This time, Ethan ran a different route than before. He used the wide-range lateral movement he learned from the Tennessee Volunteers. transfer.

Eddie George had used this trick in front of Charles Woodson before, but the result was not ideal.

As a wide receiver, Ethan is obviously faster than Eddie George.

Under another double-team from two players, Ethan watched the football fly out of bounds.

"You have one last chance. As long as Michigan scores a touchdown in the next round, you won't have the slightest chance." Charles continued to say to Ethan, he was disturbing Ethan's mentality.

Ethan looked at Charles Woodson, but he was unmoved.

In two consecutive attacks, Alabama failed to gain anything, which made Michigan feel more and more likely to win.

Charles Woodson had a vague premonition that Alabama would use new tactics. He thought of almost all possible situations and warned his teammates to strictly guard against other Alabama players except Eason, especially running backs, wide receivers and Tight end.

As expected by Charles, after two consecutive long pass attempts, Alabama made tactical changes in the third gear.

When the center kicked off the ball, Ethan did not immediately start to rush forward as before, but stood next to the tight end Rhodes to provide him with cover.

The linebacker who was supposed to intercept the tight end faced Ethan this time. With Ethan's physical advantage, he did not take advantage and could only watch the covered Rhodes directly pass from the outside. Went around.

At the same time, Rice's pass also arrived. Rhodes reached out and hooked the pass, and quickly rushed forward, but he was facing Charles Woodson. Rhodes' attempt to break through was easily seen through by Charles. Charles moved his body laterally, stopped Rhodes, exerted force on his waist, and directly tackled Rhodes.

Alabama's final offensive opportunity gained just six yards.

Victory is decided!

Charles, who was pulled up by his teammates, breathed a sigh of relief. At this time, he saw Ethan shaking his head.

"As long as you don't have room to play, so what if your teammates get the ball?" Charles had already counted out Ethan's attempts, and this result was completely acceptable to Michigan.

From the tactical trap at the beginning, to the continuous substitutions of the offensive team midway, to the perfect performance and excellent response of Charles on the defensive end, it can be said that he has done his best and is fully worthy of this Rose Bowl championship.

Hearing Charles say this, Ethan smiled very easily.

"why are you laughing?"

Ethan shrugged: "It's nothing, I just think you are too stupid."

"You seem pretty proud of yourself as a loser," Charles shot back.

"I'm not a loser, in fact. As long as Alabama gets these six yards, it has won!" Ethan suddenly said.

Are you kidding me?

Just as Charles was about to speak, Ethan had already turned around and left.

At the same time, Alabama did not choose to punt, but instead chose to power play in the fourth quarter.

Charles watched Ethan admonish several offensive linemen for a long time during the meeting.

After thinking for a moment, Charles understood Ethan's intention.

Ready to use a yard arch again?

He really refused to admit defeat, but unfortunately, so what if he got the first attack?

No...Michigan has already resolved the one-yard arch before, Ethan must have another trick up his sleeve!

Charles' brain is working rapidly...

It was so!

Charles realized what Ethan was about to do.

The so-called one-yard arch is just a cover. The final move is Ethan's catch in the deep zone!

The two sides had begun to form formations, and Charles specifically warned the free guards and safety guards.

As the referee blew the whistle, the strikers of both sides collided heavily. All the Alabama players swarmed forward. The offensive line charged forward like a bulldozer. Michigan's defensive players also continued to collide head-on. Players from both sides engaged in pure wrestling. .

Just as Charles expected, Ethan really started, and did not rush towards the crowd, but towards the far end.

At the same time, Rice passed the ball.

The moment the football was released, the entire Alabama team was like dominoes, with players falling one after another.

Charles Woodson followed Ethan closely. At the same time, the patrol guards and security guards who had been specially warned also began to outflank him.

It’s over, Ethan O’Connor!

Charles has already seized the position at this moment, and with the double-teaming of the two players, it is bound to be like the first two attacks, with Ethan failing to catch the ball.

Charles turned around and looked at the football in the sky, feeling happy.

Even the flight path of this ball was deviated, and the landing point was obviously not around Ethan O'Connor. Unexpectedly, at the last moment, the Alabama quarterback made a mistake...

The next moment, Charles Woodson, who felt deeply relaxed, felt like he had fallen into an ice cave.

I saw a distinct player wearing a white Alabama uniform near the neutral zone.

Why is he here? ! Charles was horrified.

The falling football was caught by the player who suddenly appeared!

The person who caught the ball was none other than Trent Dilfer, another quarterback on the team.

Like Ethan, he was not involved in the one-yard arch tactic.

In fact, including the team's one-yard arch tactic and Ethan are just a cover.

Ethan went out of his way to catch Charles' attention before starting the last gear and delivered a message to the forwards in front of him, all in order to conceal the real purpose.

The smart-aleck Charles took the bait.

At this time, all Michigan defensive players in the near zone were involved in defending the one-yard arch. All three players in the deep zone were taken away by Ethan. There was no one near the central zone. Trent Dilfer got the ball with great ease. .

All that's left is to keep going.

At this time, Charles wanted to return to defense, but was stopped by Ethan.

Under Ethan's interference, Charles could only watch as Trent Dilfer completed the touchdown.

"A complete tactical crushing! Alabama successfully deceived Michigan and got off to a good start in the last quarter! There is plenty of time now, and Alabama can definitely get the score back!" Keith looked extremely excited.

"Just before the start of the fourth quarter, Alabama's substitution strategy seemed confusing. I think everything has come to light now. Ethan chose to use the method of confronting Charles to attract his attention and create opportunities for his teammates. space!"

To be on the safe side, Alabama did not choose a two-point conversion after the touchdown, but instead kicked a PAT.

The final score difference was successfully reduced to 5 points.

"Is this...is this okay?" Lisa, who was anxious in the box, exclaimed when she looked at the narrowing score gap.

In the next box, Pat and Adam looked at each other.

"Only Ethan would use this tactic." Pat shook his head.

If it were me, I definitely wouldn't dare.

Although the tactics Ethan chose at several critical moments seemed extremely risky.

But it often works wonders.

Looking at the results after the fact, each of Ethan's seemingly outrageous decisions proved to be correct.

Perhaps, this is the difference between himself and Ethan.

In a mansion in the San Francisco Bay Area, Steve Mariucci looked at Ethan being hugged by everyone on the TV broadcast.

I couldn't help but start to wonder if I had made the wrong choice just now.

In the game, many players, including the head coach, were livid.

"Shit! Can you be fooled by Ethan?" Brian Griese pushed Charles Woodson who returned to the court.

"Won't you be fooled by him if you came on the field?" Charles Woodson asked.

Brian Griese choked. It was really difficult to answer this question for a while.

"We haven't lost yet, as long as we can score a touchdown in the fourth quarter!" Tom Brady looked at his teammates and then the head coach.

"Coach, I would like to volunteer to play in the fourth quarter." Tom took the initiative.

The head coach looked at it, then at Brian Griese, thought for a few seconds, and finally chose to reject Tom's request.

"Tom, your speed is not advantageous and you are not suitable for the stage. Brian Griese should come." The head coach said.

In fact, at the end of the day, I still don't trust Tom. If there is another mistake, Michigan will be completely finished.

"Okay." Tom Brady nodded helplessly and chose to follow the head coach's arrangements.

Unfortunately, Brian Griese, who appeared again, failed to bring a turnaround to Michigan. After two consecutive passes failed, Brian Griese took the initiative to run the ball when his teammates had no room to get the ball. Not only did he fail He was able to cross the line of scrimmage, but the football was still in the collision. The Alabama linebacker picked up the football and rushed forward, leading the score in one leap!

The fans at the scene once again burst into loud cheers.

There was complete silence on the Michigan bench.

Ethan's words came to Charles Woodson's mind.

"...Alabama getting those six yards was enough to secure the victory."

Is it really what he said?

It would be false to say that you are willing, but your teammates have worked hard until the last moment.

Michigan is already good at defense, and now scoring points is almost impossible.

With a heavy heart, Charles walked towards the field and bumped into Ethan head-on.

"The victory or defeat between the teams has been decided, but the result has not yet been decided between the two of us." Ethan looked at Charles and spoke slowly.

(End of this chapter)