Matthew Osborne
The consensus on the home sideline was the same among most observers.
This team could be undefeated, if not for some silly stuff.
But the great Bill Parcells once said, “You are what your record says you are.”
Standing there Friday night, though, I was still sure the Raiders would win, even after they gave up the lead late.
When they were pushed back to 3rd-and-16 in the final minutes, I still had hope, but it was wavering.
But Carson Parker stood ready to boost everyone’s spirits.
In the midst of a game where he ran for 145 yards and threw for 167 more, Parker was taking control of the Raiders, just like coach Benji Harrison wanted a couple weeks ago. He wanted one of his quarterbacks – both of whom have had ups and downs – to take command and be “The Guy.”
And on that 3rd-and-16, Raider fans didn’t see Carson Parker. They saw Warren Beatty.
All of these kids are too young to remember “Heaven Can Wait,” a movie about a man fulfilling his destiny in football and in life.
When Warren Beatty took his rightful place in the Super Bowl at the end of the movie, his phenomenal runs downfield to get the Rams the title are breathtaking even now, 44 years after the movie was released.
Parker took off on that crucial third down and knew where he had to get to reach the sticks. He did that plus three yards, and Beatty’s scampers were the only reasonable comp in my head.
This was it. This was his Tom Jarrett moment. (Seriously, rent the movie. You’ll thank me.)
And in the end, it was one split-second decision that changed the narrative. In a moment when he should have thrown the ball away, he didn’t.
And just like that, it was over.
Life does not always imitate Hollywood.
“He was heartbroken after the game, all the kids were,” Harrison said. “I just put my arm around Carson and told him to learn from it and reminded him that he played the best he ever had, and let’s build on that. You can’t go back and change it. All you can do is be prepared when you get in that situation again.”
We talked last week about football building character, and revealing it. It is far more likely that the many other plays in that game Parker made prior to the final pass will reveal more about his remaining football destiny for the Raiders.
I can’t remember if it was Benjamin Disreali or Taylor Swift who uttered the phrase “Shake it off,” but its wisdom is universally applicable.
There is still time to write a better ending to the movie.
Matthew Osborne is the editor of The Northeast Georgian. Is there a football movie he has never seen? Actually, he didn’t sit through all of The Replacements. Or the Longest Yard remake. Ask him about almost every other one, though.