Combine vs Kickoff

 

 

 

COMBINE VS KICKOFF

 

Location:

Psalm 31:24  Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all you that hope in the LORD

Headline:

"It is not the size of a man but the size of his heart that matters."
5 time heavyweight champion Boxer, Evander Holyfield

 

Game Summary:

What Evander Holyfield said above is basically not to judge others by what you see on the outside, but rather what you see on the inside.

Hayden Schaumburg loved to farm. At Watseka High School, he was in the National Honor Society and chapter president of the Future Farmers of America. At 16 he was already working the 2,000 acres of land owned by his dad 90 miles due South of Chicago. Hayden could drive the combine 

and managed a sweet corn crop. 

Football was his other love. His teammates said he was the hardest working player on the field, both the football field and the fields he farmed. After finishing High School Hayden knew where he was going to be… getting a degree in agriculture at the University of Illinois and then back to the farm. Friday nights he was on the football field, and then on the farm fields early Saturday morning.

Then tragedy struck. While running full force down field on a kickoff, Hayden had a violent collision with another player. Hayden laid on the field lifeless. Everyone knew this was serious. The game was delayed almost an hour until emergency transportation could arrive. They wanted to airlift him to the hospital, but it was too windy. 

Into November Hayden’s parents stayed close by his bed. Hayden suffered a broken neck. Every procedure was critical. Meanwhile, the farm was left unattended. The 1000 acres of sweet corn, if not harvested, would go to waste. Hayden worked hard to have this premium crop of corn. 

Then one Saturday morning combines, trucks and over 100 people showed up to the corn fields. By late morning, there were 16 combines and 30 trucks ready to haul the harvest to the grain elevators in town. In one day, more than 125,000 bushels of corn left the farm in less than 10 hours.Hayden put his heart in everything he did, had won the love and admiration of his school and teammates. That morning everyone put their hearts into who Hayden was.

Watseka High has University of Alabama-styled helmets, with the numbers on the right side, so the players decided to tear off their own numbers and stick on Hayden's – 66. They all played as No. 66 that night. They all played for No. 66, Hayden. "If I had his heart in my other players' bodies," coach Steve Lucas said, "we'd never lose a game."

Hayden has several months of rehab ahead of him. There is a football field, a cornfield, and an entire town of fields, waiting for a Friday night or a Saturday morning when that boy comes home.

See a video story about Hayden here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=19gvK5RSDwc

 MVP:

Hayden Schaumburg #66 for the Watseka Warriors

Recap:

Do you know someone whose hard work really shows their heart at work? How has that inspired you?

Do you see how people are moved by our hearts and how hard we play? No matter how talented we are, we can inspire others by how much heart we put into it. How do you see yourself doing that? Where do you see a lot of heart in your fellow players?
 

Practice:

Listen to Little Ol’ Me by Jamie Grace

Pictured above: Jamie Grace