Chapter 430: Do It Again

Lu Ke’s eyes were locked on Logan, his arm still held in its follow-through. He clenched his jaw, watching Logan make the catch and then roll into the end zone. In that instant, a surge of power exploded through his body.

Lu Ke leaped high into the air, pumping his clenched right fist downward, unleashing all the pent-up frustration from the second half. They did it! They did it again! They’d scored the touchdown, tied the game, and put the chance for the game-winner at David Akens’s feet! They did it!

The players all swarmed Logan in the end zone, furiously slapping his helmet and back. They joined the entire stadium’s fans, shouting and cheering with abandon. But Logan shrugged off his teammates, turned, and ran straight for Lu Ke. He picked up speed, accelerated again, and finally leaped into Lu Ke’s arms, celebrating with a helmet-to-helmet bump.

“We did it! We—this was us! We did it together!”

Logan cried out ecstatically, and Lu Ke couldn’t help but burst out laughing, finally able to release his own pent-up emotions. “Yes, we did it!”

This was not a game that could be won by one person alone. It wasn’t even just Lu Ke and Logan. The entire team did it. At the critical moment, they once again unleashed their unyielding, tenacious will, successfully putting victory back within their grasp.

“Can you believe it? In the final moments, the New York Giants had almost completely abandoned their defense. Their defensive formation is always man-to-man. Always.”

After the initial wave of excitement, Kirk and Teddy resumed their analysis of the last offensive play.

“Against a tactically skilled quarterback like Lu Ke, every move they made fell right into his rhythm. What looked like a nail-biter of a game was actually under Lu Ke’s control the whole time. On that final drive, at least three times, the Giants Defense Team was just slightly out of position, and Lu Ke capitalized on it, completing pass after pass and ultimately scoring the touchdown!”

Kirk shook his head and summarized, “The Giants’ defense fell short at the critical moment. A tactic might work ten times, but that doesn’t guarantee it’ll work the eleventh. This is the NFL. This is professional football. Even though the opposing quarterback is a rookie, no one can underestimate his ability. Once the San Francisco 49ers rediscovered their form from the first half, they completely dominated their opponent again.”

Exciting, thrilling, unbelievable. It was a perfect encapsulation of the uncertainty of sports, where anything is possible!

On the television screen, the replay of the touchdown catch played over and over. Again, and again. Gradually, Kirk and Teddy noticed something wasn’t right.

Teddy was the first to point it out. “Wait, Logan was already down before he entered the end zone.”

“That’s right. Just short of the end zone, Logan sat on the ground, which means the ball is dead. That’s not a touchdown. It’s a pass that gets them to the one-yard line,” Kirk said, nodding in agreement as he came to the same realization.

The Alliance’s rules for when a ball becomes dead after a catch are incredibly complicated, but they can be simply summarized as “the torso touching the ground.” This includes the back, buttocks, knees, and so on. If only a hand is on the ground for support while the main torso remains off the ground, the player can still legally advance.

The commentators slowly put it together, recalling Logan’s backward roll that looked like a tumbling panda. The referees were also coming around. After reviewing the game tape, they confirmed the commentators’ suspicions.

“After an official review, the ruling on the field must be changed. The runner was down before entering the end zone, at the one-yard line. At the same time, he was down at the eighteen-second mark. According to the official rulebook, there will be a ten-second runoff from the time the referee announces the ruling until the game restarts. Therefore, the game clock is now adjusted to eight seconds. San Francisco 49ers, first and goal.”

“BOOOO… BOOOO… ROOOAR…”

All of Candlestick Park was filled with boos and uproar. Whiplashed from the ecstasy of a game-tying play to the bitter disappointment of reality, the fans’ emotions spun out of control. They unleashed their fury on the referees, convinced that a perfectly good touchdown for their team had been ruined.

Even Jiang Youning was no exception. Cupping her hands around her mouth like a megaphone, she relentlessly booed the referees on the field.

Sensing eyes on her, Jiang Youning glanced over and saw the fan in the wheelchair next to her. He had a look of shock and disbelief on his face, as if he couldn’t believe this seemingly elegant lady was capable of such a crude display. This made Jiang Youning laugh cheerfully. She raised a hand, beckoning for him to join in.

“I’ll bet you anything, we’re going to win this game!” Jiang Youning shouted, her eyes and cheeks radiant with confidence.

On the field, the head referee calmly finished announcing the ruling, then turned and walked back onto the field to restart the game.

For the two teams, however, it was a completely different scene. The San Francisco 49ers offense looked stunned and bewildered, while the New York Giants Defense Team looked like they were still reeling from a close call.

As the quarterback, Lu Ke was the first one on the field to compose himself.

‘He knew it was useless to argue the details now. Any questions about the referee’s call would have to wait for an appeal after the game. For now, they were on the one-yard line, first and goal. That was all that mattered. He had to refocus and get back into the game. If the first touchdown didn’t count, then they’d just have to get a second one.’

‘The question was, why were ten seconds taken off the clock?’

Lu Ke approached the head referee and politely asked for clarification. Over the deafening noise of the stadium, the referee gave a concise explanation.

A moment ago, when the referee had signaled a touchdown, the play had become dead, so the game clock stopped. But in reality, the touchdown was no good. According to the rules, the clock should have continued to run, so a mandatory ten-second runoff was required. Logan was down at the eighteen-second mark, so the game clock was adjusted to eight seconds.

However, after the adjustment, the game clock would not continue to run. The San Francisco 49ers would still have twenty-five seconds on the play clock to discuss their strategy.

Lu Ke nodded, showing he understood. For them, although it was a shame to have the touchdown taken away, at least the game clock was now stopped, allowing them to regroup and call a new play. That was a silver lining. Since the ruling was final, they had no choice but to look ahead.

“A run? Or a pass?” Teddy wondered aloud.

Kirk’s reply was simple. “Pass! There are only eight seconds left. A run play consumes too much time, and it’s too risky, even for a gamble at the one-yard line. So, Lu Ke has to pass. It’s what the San Francisco 49ers are best at, and it’s also their most effective tactic.”

On the field, both teams lined up again. The San Francisco 49ers switched to a two-by-two formation, but the New York Giants… were still in man-to-man defense.

This time, however, there was a slight change. Because it was a play from the one-yard line, the Giants Defense Team stacked the line with players to prevent the 49ers from running it in for a one-yard touchdown. They left only one safety in the backfield for coverage, causing the entire defensive formation to compress significantly near the goal line.

Pistol Formation.

Lu Ke became completely still, his mind free of distractions. He heard the referee’s whistle, the game clock started ticking again, and he instantly called for the snap.

Jonathan Goodwin snapped the ball into Lu Ke’s hands. Lu Ke didn’t pause or even take a dropback. He turned left and threw, quick and decisive. The ball was out of his hands in less than a second. The entire play unfolded and was executed so fast that the New York Giants had no time to react.

Why?

Because it was man-to-man coverage, not zone.

Against a zone defense, the players would need to run crossing routes to disrupt the defensive zones and tear open a passing lane. But against man-to-man, a pass at the instant of the snap means every receiver is in a one-on-one matchup. It was the simplest and most direct form of engagement; there was no need to scheme someone open.

This time, Lu Ke’s choice was…

Michael Crabtree.

Because Lu Ke’s pass was so quick, Crabtree only had to dip his shoulder and surge forward to catch Kiwanuka completely off guard. Kiwanuka stumbled and fell, while Crabtree took two steps forward, raised his hands, and made the catch.

It was clean and direct. The other duels between players hadn’t even begun, and he was already standing in the end zone, football in hand.

Another touchdown!

“AAAAHHH!” Candlestick Park absolutely erupted, even more furiously than the first time. A touchdown that easy, coming just as suspense had begun to build, crushed it for a second time.

But this time, the San Francisco 49ers players didn’t celebrate. Crabtree, in particular, looked at the referee in utter disbelief, holding out his hands and pleading his case—

A yellow flag was on the field.

The referee did not signal a touchdown. Instead, he indicated a foul on the play. This meant the penalty had to be on the offense; otherwise, he would have just confirmed the touchdown.

The head referee immediately announced the penalty. “Pass interference. Offense, number fifteen. Ten-yard penalty. Repeat first down.”

Boos erupted, rising in a violent crescendo. Before the crowd at Candlestick Park could even reach the peak of their excitement, they were dealt another heavy blow. Not only was the touchdown nullified, but they were also penalized ten yards. It was an absolute gut punch! All 70,000 spectators remained on their feet, turning their thumbs down to express their intense displeasure.

But it was no use.

Three seconds, first and eleven. That was the situation the San Francisco 49ers now faced.