Jake Porter's Touchdown
Sometimes, getting to play is what matters most
November 2, 2002
Much will be made of the final score in this weekend's big game between Michigan State and Michigan, but that's not always what matters.
From southern Ohio comes this story of a game last weekend between two high schools.
As related by the Herald Dispatch in nearby Huntington, W.Va., the Northwest team included Jake Porter, a mentally handicapped senior who had made every practice and suited up for every game for four years but never stepped on the field. Before the game, Northwest coach Dave Frantz asked Waverly coach Derek DeWitt if Northwest could safely get Porter the ball.
"I told them ahead of time that he can't take a hit or anything," Frantz said. "If the game's not at stake on the last play, I wanted him to come in."
With five seconds left and Waverly leading 42-0, Northwest had the ball on Waverly's 49-yard line when Frantz called time out. He met DeWitt at midfield and told him Jake was coming in, just to take a handoff and kneel down.
"Well," said DeWitt, "let him score."
"I said, 'nah,' " Frantz told the Herald Dispatch. "Then we talked about it with the referees, and they said, 'Hey, coach, we understand.' "
So Porter came in at tailback. When the handoff came, instead of blocking and tackling, all the other 21 players on the field made a path. At first, Jake turned to go the wrong way. But the other players pointed toward the end zone.
"Once he figured it out," said teammate Zach Smith, "he took off."
As Jake ran, players from both teams and on the sidelines began to run with him, step for step, cheering Jake into the end zone. When he scored, there wasn't a dry eye on the field or in the stands.
"We didn't do anything special." said Waverly coach DeWitt, whose team surrendered a shutout to make the moment happen. "We were just happy to be a part of that."
In some games, the final score doesn't tell the whole story.
Below you can watch the local news story on video and see the touchdown run
http://www.nbc4columbus.com/footbal...768/detail.html
