Just the Kicker

My son, Nathan, is the kicker for our high school football team. Just the kicker. He does not play any other position, and I have to say, this does not make me sad, because the kicker has the least chance of getting hurt. If the opposing team “roughs the kicker,” they incur a 15-yard penalty, and therefore it rarely happens. Ah . . . that is one worry down for this mama. Now I just get to stress about Nathan’s accuracy and follow-through each time he goes to kick.

Being “just the kicker” means he kicks kickoffs, extra points, and field goals. Sometimes he punts. He knows his job and practices his job, and I may be a little biased, but he is good at his job. 

Nathan frequently kicks touchbacks during kickoff, which keeps the other team from being able to run the ball back. However, a few weeks ago one of Nathan’s kickoffs went to the two-yard line, missing the touchback, and the opposing team caught it and ran. They didn’t just run it a few yards—they managed to break past our line and were headed for a touchdown. The only line of defense left was Nathan. Unbeknownst to me, the kicker has one more role. . . . If the opposing team gets past our line, the kicker must tackle. 

So there he was, standing still while the opposing player (who happened to be much bigger) was charging full speed in his direction. Then, without a hitch, Nathan changed roles and dived at the player, taking him down, keeping him from making a touchdown. The announcer called out, “That’s a tackle by number three, Nathan Behne!”

Changing roles, changing responsibilities, responding in the moment . . . Doesn’t that sound like our job as educators? For us, the “play” might be a lesson, a conference, a transition, or an interaction with a student. And although we have a plan for how it should go and what we are to do, sometimes it doesn’t go as planned, and we have to think and act on our feet. We have to be prepared to change roles and keep moving, often without a section to cheer us on, but for the good of the team, so we can celebrate a victory in that moment. 

We work in the role of teacher, yes, but we are also a nurse, counselor, coach, cheerleader, musician, actor, problem solver, caregiver, and more. We are there to teach, but we must be prepared to switch roles to “tackle” the situation at any given point so we can provide what our students need, when they need it. It is a large responsibility, with a great reward. 

On that night, when Nathan got his first tackle of the season, he responded as he knew how, and his response kept the team moving forward to a 32-22 victory. It wasn’t the main job of his role on the team, but it was still important and vital to their success. And it didn’t shake him. If anything it energized him. He was proud of his accomplishment.

In a single day of teaching, we have many “plays” that break through our “defensive” line and cause us to have to think on our feet. Our job changes. We are never “just the teacher.” How we respond to these shifting roles, and the energy we put toward each response, can be vital to the daily success of our students and our class as a whole. Take time daily to be proud of that accomplishment.