[08.11.04]
Written by: Bob Pinter

For the Love of the Game, Part 2
Favre Beats Former Team Under the Sun

[08.10.04] (Somewhere in Hawaii) -- The run was slower, the helmet not held as high. The smile was thinner and had a few more wrinkles, but for Brett Favre, it had all the magic of ten years ago.

And as the crowd of PWFFL stars watched Favre leap into Donald Driver's arms, Ahman Green's arms, Darren Sharper's arms...the moment almost seemed...real.

But it wasn't. This game didn't count for much other than bragging rights. The summer was coming to an end, and the PWFFL began to celebrate it with a 12-team tournament...before the players would go their separate ways, some to their former teams, some to new teams, others to the draft pool.

With that in mind, the players gathered on a private field somewhere in Hawaii to play the game the way it was meant to be played. And Favre did just that, throwing an 18-yard touchdown pass to Andre Davis to give the Green Bay Fudgepackers an upset victory over his old team, the Wisconsin Wannabes.

This was football in the grass, without referees, without cameras, without talk radio hosts second-guessing every play. Granted, it was without a few other things, too, so the players had to adjust:

1. No offensive line: Not wanting to take a sack on every play, a solution was proposed by one of the game's best runners, Detroit quarterback Michael Vick. "Remember the five-doggie rule, guys?" he asked.

"I haven't played that since grade school," said Wannabes lineman Javon Kearse.

But it seemed to work. The defensive lineman counted to "five-doggie" before blitzing, unless the quarterback ran or handed off. That is, until Kearse's teammate Albert Haynesworth buried Favre for a sack in the first quarter.

2. No punters: For a few teams, this meant the backup kicker pulling double duty. But guys like Fudgepacker kicker Ryan Longwell had punted in college, so it was only a matter of re-learning the basics. Then again, Longwell wasn't even punting for his own team. Jason Hanson took care of that.

3. No scoreboard: "We'll play five-minute quarters," announced Keyshawn Johnson. "I've got a stopwatch, so I'll keep time. Three timeouts, but do us all a favor, and try to keep the game moving."

Thus began the PWFFL's summer tournament. And it was Longwell who scored first, on a Green Bay field goal from 47 yards away.

"Let's just hold the lead," he said.

But while Favre was trying to recapture some of his old glory, Wannabes QB Joey Harrington was still trying to find his. Traded for Favre two years ago, Harrington struggled for his new team early. But he seemed to relax under the Hawaiian sun, connecting with tight end Marcus Pollard for a 79-yard bomb to put the 'Bees ahead.

The two teams traded blows back and forth; Green Bay, chipping away at the Wisconsin defense with short passes by Favre and chip shots from Longwell. But Harrington continued to battle back, throwing a 52-yard strike to Marty Booker and a 73-yard beauty to Javon Walker, both for touchdowns in the fourth quarter.

But with 1:30 left in the game, Favre trotted out onto the field as he had done so many times before, and got that look; the look all great athletes have when that last hit, last shot, last touchdown has to be made.

"X-out on 2," Favre told his teammates, as he stepped up to the ball. With no center to snap it, Favre simply called "hut-hut" before picking up the ball, dropping back, and hitting Driver with a pass.

Then, it happened. Favre quickly called the offensive unit back as time ticked, and quickly found Green. Then it was Booker making a catch just past midfield as the clock ticked past one minute. Favre dropped back one more time, only to have Kearse grab his elbow, throwing him to the ground, hard. The ball skittered across the field as the field became silent. Favre got up, grimacing in pain.

"Shit," mumbled fullback Tony Richardson under his breath. "There goes our season."

In came Quincy Carter, the backup who owner Dave Shirey was telling the media back on the mainland would be cut later this week. Carter found Michael Bennett at the Wannabes' 35 yard line, but then took a sack himself.

Carter sat up, looking for a hand to help him to his feet. As his eyes adjusted to the sun, he looked up to see Favre's hand.

"You'll be fine," the starter told him. "But I'm not finished here."

And following a pass to Az-Zahir Hakim that put the Fudgepackers at the 18-yard line, Favre connected with Davis on his second touchdown of the day.

Game Over. Final Score: Green Bay 23, Wisconsin 21.

"Come on, get off the field!" Keyshawn yelled from what seemed like a million miles away. "We got Rhode Island, we got Northern Michigan. Go!"

And as Brett Favre's teammates ran with him off the field, he knew he would live to fight another day.