Trying walking in my shoes, you stumble in the footsteps. It all started on a muggy August morning. In 2010, the West Branch Bears football program was to succumb to the plague of losing like most programs do. It had to attempt to replace 17 seniors. It had to attempt to replace 16 starting positions out of 22. It had to attempt to replace the school's single season rushing yardage record holder... for a second consecutive season. It had to attempt to replace a Division I-FCS offensive and defensive lineman. It had to attempt to replace a 11 all-district performers. However, if you know West Branch football, it is never an attempt gone awry. It is just what the Bears do - year in and year out. Small school football programs that have success in Iowa are built on a variety of ingredients. Directly, they consist of: - Hard work - Desire - Determination - Speed - Strength - Tradition - Resilience - Personnel - Coaching Staff - Supportive Communities When you sign the letter of intent to play football for Coach Pedersen and his staff, you are signing a waiver to be part of something special. It is not just a 2010 thing, or, for next season, a 2011 thing. It is a lifetime thing. For the members of the 2010 football program, they heard all about how 'this is the year the Bears lose.' and 'there is no way West Branch makes it to the Dome this year.' To be transparent, I would likely have agreed with the latter... had you asked me on August 27th following the game at West Liberty. While a season opener, the Bears seemed to be missing that ?wow? factor most successful teams should possess. But, if you would have asked me after every other game on the schedule, my opinion would change. I was ?wow?-ed on many occasions this year. If you want, I could now go into and etymological explanation of the word 'wow. To spare that painful excursion, I will just let you know that 'wow' is an onomatopoetic word ? or, in poor man's terms, a word that actually sounds like what it is describing. OK, with that excruciating moment in life now out of the way... I was wow'ed on September 3rd when the Bears manhandled a ranked visitor (Lisbon) at the Little Rose Bowl. I was wow'ed on September 17th when the starting Bear defense allowed just two total yards in thirteen drives against traditional power Pekin. I was wow'ed on September 24th when West Branch took it to the air for 257 yards while under the spotlight of the KCRG 'Game of the Week'. I was even more wow'ed that same night by how well Brandon Young and Rilen Carew handled themselves while on live TV. He needs a date! I was wow'ed on October 1st in Riverside when senior Thomas Cantrell intercepted a pass and had one of the better twenty yard returns you will ever see?running over two or three Huskies defenders. His celebration after the fact was good as well. I was wow'ed two weeks later by Jake Slocum's 58 yard kick return. Sloc, you are a 4.6 forty guy in my book. It was all part of a 54-0 thumping of Cardinal (Eldon). I am not sure which wow'ed me more the following week in Stanwood. Was it the 21-0 lead North Cedar had at halftime, or the way the Bears erased that and then some? I was probably more wow'ed by how amazing The Hood looked in the hallway outside of Coach Pedersen's office. Also, the calmness of a sophomore and the chest pound of a senior wow'ed me that week. Playoff time! I was wow'ed in the first round playoff game, not from anything that happened on the field, but by the elements around the field. Never have I been at a football game in which the wind speed was equal to or greater than the combined score of both teams. Wow! I was wow'ed in the second round playoff game by how the Bears absolutely dominated the state's leading rusher. His, Connor O'Brien's, yardage looks good in the newspaper, but it took 32 bruise building carries to get there. That is what a West Branch defense does ? you have to earn your 'wows' on them, it's not a gift. I was wow'ed again the third round by how West Branch spotted North Cedar another sizeable first half lead?.before the obvious domination in the second half. Seriously, have you ever seen two games like that before in your life? DOME SWEET DOME! I was wow'ed at the Dome by the fan support. I was wow'ed by the power of will the Bears brought to the field. I was wow'ed by the love each player shown to one another after the loss. I was wow'ed by the noise. I was wow'ed by the generosity of our Booster Club. I was wow'ed by the way the selected players handled themselves in the face of reporters following a season-ending loss. I could go on and on. 2010 was a season that was not supposed to end like this. It was supposed to end on October 27th, or November 1st, or November 8th. It didn't officially end until 11:33am on November 13th (I actually looked at my cell phone for the time). You would have thought life was going to end at that time. It is just the feeling you have. After showering, cleaning up the locker room, and packing everything in the undercarriage of the buss, the West Branch coaching staff, players, statisticians, video crew, sports information director, cheerleading squad, pep band, and high school principal (plus family) departed the UNI-D(H)ome in Cedar Falls at 12:54 (again, the cell phone time) and headed for home. Senior Captain Rilen Carew and senior Tyler Trimble were playing their Yugi-Oh card game in the rear seat. Senior captain Clay Cook was talking with junior Austin Finnegan about watching a movie. Senior Thomas Cantrell and junior Mitch Hesseltine were wondering if we were going to finish watching Top Gun on the way home. They were worried about Maverick and Goose. Many of the players were trying to make food trades. "Dude, will you trade me the Slim Jim for an apple?" one player asked. Our bus driver let assistant coach Jarod Tylee turn on the radio so we could listen to the Iowa-Northwestern game. Half of the people on the bus began to cheer. Half of the people began giving high-fives to one another; myself and coaches Scott Kelly and Brad McCloskey included. Iowa play-by-play announcer Gary Dolphin then announces, "Dike New Hartford 21, West Branch 14 in Class 1A semifinal action at the UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls this morning." I looked at my cell phone again. The time? 1:09. 15 minutes is all you need to see how quickly things change. But, one thing that will remain is this: In 2010 Iowa HS football, few walked where the Bears walked. I am just glad to have been able to wear my own shoes while doing it. WestBranchFootball.com - 'The Bear Facts' 2