Once the ball is snapped, senior quarterback Bobby McEachern knows he is going to run it. Faking a pass and taking his chance, McEachern trusts that his lineman will create a hole for him to run.
But there is no hole.
McEachern is forced to change direction, and as he plants his foot to avoid a tackle, a lineman falls hard and lands on his leg.
SNAP.
In that one moment, the would-be varsity starting quarterback knew his last season playing high school football was ruined.
McEachern’s injury happened during a preseason scrimmage against Central High School, on the last day of his double sessions. When he felt the lineman fall on his leg, he could feel his leg bent and his fibula snap.
“I honestly didn’t even care about the pain. I was just upset that my season was gone and I’d never play football again,” McEachern said.
McEachern has been playing football since he was a 3rd grader on his Panthers traveling team, and has been playing for the Lancers since his freshman year. Because he does not plan on playing in college, McEachern knew beforehand that this would be the last time he would ever play football.
“Sitting there watching on the sidelines is so painful because all I want to do is go out there and play,” McEachern said. “It kills me to know my starting quarterback position got taken away because of this dumb injury.”
He was a varsity team member last year, however, he was not a starter and didn’t get as much playing time as he would have liked. Last year he suffered from a head injury which resulted in being benched for the majority of the season. But in the time that he did play, McEachern managed to snag a total of 73 rushing yards in only four games.
“Last season I couldn’t really do much because I was behind the Gatorade Player of the Year [Eric Fairweather] and I got knocked out at the end of the season,” McEachern said.
Varsity football coach, James Lauzon, is one of many who will feel his absence on the field. Because he has more varsity experience than the other quarterbacks, McEachern would have been a useful asset to have on the field.
“He has a lot of experience and you can tell he’s played his whole life,” Lauzon said. “The other kids really follow him and he’s played really well.”
If all goes well, McEachern hopes to play four games this season and hopefully more come playoffs.
He has already started lifting and doing all he can in preparation for his return back to the field.
“I want to be ready to play once I’m healthy and that’s all I’m looking forward to so far,” McEachern said.
