Chapter 20

Ren’s dad had arranged for NetJets to fly his son the 1,700 miles to Ames, Iowa. Ren’s new Camaro would be shipped there by truck and waiting for him to arrive. Thanks to important connections, Scott Carter was able to get his son’s driver’s license reinstated just in time for his son to head off to college. Unfortunately, he would be out of town when his son’s flight left, but they were able to have dinner together the night before he left for college. “Remember to behave yourself. This will probably be your only shot at this,” his father reminded him. “I got it. I will behave,” Ren reassured his father. “Your car will be waiting for you at the airport in Ames, so once you land, you can head over to campus. Where are you staying?” Scott asked his son. “According to the paperwork, they have me in Larch Hall in the Hansen House,” Ren replied. “They show that I will have a roommate. Another freshman football player. He had better be cool,” Ren added. “It will be fine. You will be busy with football and studying. Remember to study, okay?” his father reminded him. “I got this. I am an athlete. Colleges don’t make athletes actually do work. We focus on football; they don’t care about anything else,” Ren shared. “Don’t count on it. I have done some checking on this coach, and he seems to think education is pretty important. His teams have been in the top five every year for graduates,” Scott shared. “Graduating? I don’t have to worry about that. I just need to get through a full year, correct?” Ren asked. “Technically, yes,” his dad replied. “If I am close to setting some NCAA record, I may hang around another year or two. Depends on how they treat me,” Ren stated. With that, Scott closed his eyes and slowly shook his head. He was thinking that his son had a lot to learn. Hope this will be a good lesson for him.

Isaac sat with his family, discussing the plans to get him to campus the next day. His parents would drive him up to school and help him move his stuff into his dorm room. “Which dorm are you in?” his father asked him. “I am in Larch Hall, Hansen House. My roommate is also a freshman football player. At least we have that in common. Should be fun hanging out with another player,” Isaac responded. “It will be strange living somewhere else. I have spent my entire life in that room with Jacob and Joshua,” Isaac mentioned. “Don’t expect too much. This is a college dorm. They are not usually much more than a small room with a couple of beds and desks,” his mom reminded him. “Well, at least our hall has air conditioning. Some still don’t on campus,” Isaac shared. “Are you packed?” his dad asked. “Yes, I have two suitcases and my backpack. All set,” Isaac replied.

At 8:00 a.m. the next morning, Ren heard a knock on the door. Must be Jimmy to drive me to the airport, Ren thought to himself. As he opened the door, he rolled out his four large suitcases for Jimmy to load into the Audi. Ren grabbed his backpack and extra set-up keys for his new car. It left three days ago for the trip to Iowa. “They had better take good care of that car,” Ren threatened to himself. Once loaded, they took the easy drive to the Santa Monica Airport for Ren to meet his flight. It was so nice to fly private and not deal with the lines in the airport. Jimmy arranged to have his luggage stored on the plane as Ren climbed the steps to meet the pilot. “Good morning, sir,” the pilot greeted him. “How long is the flight?” Ren replied without a greeting. “It will be about two and a half hours. We expect a clear path all the way,” the pilot replied. “Well, let’s get going,” Ren stated. “Right away, sir,” the pilot responded.

Isaac woke up at 5:25 a.m. He jumped right out of bed, anxious to start his day. Cannot believe today is the day, he said quietly to himself. Isaac sat on the porch, waiting for his parents to get up. At 6:00 a.m., Ruth began cooking breakfast to start their day. She was excited for her son but also very sad to think he was going to be away at college. “I remember when he was four and we got him his first football helmet,” Ruth told her husband. “Yes, it was too big and kept falling over his eyes, and he would run into the clothesline or bushes. He would dust himself off and try again,” Peter answered his wife. “It will be okay,” he reassured his wife. “I know. I am just going to miss him,” she responded. As they finished breakfast, it was time to load the car. Jacob had just left for work, so they had said their goodbyes. Now, Isaac told Hanna, Priscilla, and Joshua goodbye and that he would be home when he got a break before classes started. With that, they loaded up and made the thirty-minute drive to Ames. Peter pulled up to Larch Hall so they could unload Isaac’s things. “There doesn’t seem to be many students here,” his father mentioned. “The rest of the students won’t come until August, right before classes start,” Isaac replied. As they headed toward the entrance, Isaac stopped to leave his bike in the rack and lock it in place. Then they headed up to the seventh floor and found room 7322, which would be Isaac’s room for this school year. It was a nice functional room that overlooked Lincoln Way, which was one of the main streets on campus. Looking to the east, Isaac could see Hilton Coliseum, where the basketball teams played. If he looked straight south, he could barely see Jack Trice Stadium, where he would be playing. This has to be a dream, Isaac thought to himself. “Is this coed?” his mom asked. “No, this house is men only,” Isaac replied, thinking it strange to use the term “men” when referring to him and his classmates. “The other houses are coed. Each floor is a ‘house,’” Isaac explained. “Well, either way, you need to focus on your studies and football. You do not have time to be chasing girls all over campus,” his mom warned him. “I understand,” Isaac replied. “My dorm room is a lot like my room back home. I have a bunk bed over my desk, so that will work out well,” Isaac observed. “Well, we had better take off, or I will never get your mother to leave,” Peter said with a grin. “I know; I know. Just don’t like leaving my boy here alone,” Ruth replied. “I won’t be alone. My roommate will show up sometime today. We start practice tomorrow,” Isaac shared. Finally, Peter was able to drag his wife out of Isaac’s room and to their car for the drive home. Isaac sat in his desk chair, looking around and taking it all in. Isaac decided to take a walk and check out the common areas and see what was happening. After spending an hour walking around and checking out the cafeteria downstairs, he headed back to his room. As he walked in, he was greeted by large piles of stuff strewn all around their little room. Isaac had never seen so much stuff. Finally, he noticed Ren digging through a suitcase and hanging more clothes in his wardrobe closet. “Hi, you must be my roommate. I am Isaac,” Isaac said, holding out his hand. “Hey, I am Ren. There is not enough room in this place. How can they expect two of us to live here?” Ren said. “When are you bringing the rest of your stuff?” he asked Isaac. “All of my stuff is here,” Isaac replied as Ren looked around surprisingly. “Well, okay then,” Ren replied. “So where are you from?” Isaac asked. “Santa Monica, you know, in California,” Ren replied. “How about you?” Ren asked. “I am from Ankeny, Iowa, about thirty minutes from here,” Isaac answered. “You choose to live in Iowa? Seriously?” Ren asked. “Why, yes. It is a great place to live,” Isaac replied. “Whatever,” Ren retorted. “So what position do you play?” Isaac asked. “Quarterback. I guess you have not heard of me. Four thousand one hundred yards passing? Seventy-two touchdowns? Second place in state?” Ren replied. “No, sorry,” Isaac answered. “Let me guess. You are a safety?” Ren guessed. “No, I am a wide receiver,” Isaac replied. “Really, you are so short. My receivers back home were all over six foot two. I guess things are different in Iowa,” Ren said. Isaac was getting fed up with the negative comments from his new roommate. “The cafeteria downstairs looks pretty good. We have meal plans, so we can get what we want to eat,” Isaac shared. “I hope they have fresh seafood. That is what I eat most of the time,” Ren replied. “Well, since we are in Iowa, which is a very long way from any ‘sea,’ ‘fresh seafood’ will probably be an issue,” Isaac explained. “Great! Do you want to drive around the area to see what is out there?” Ren asked. “Sure. You have a car with you?” Isaac asked. “Well, sure, don’t you?” Ren replied. “No, I only brought my bike,” Isaac answered. As they made their way to the parking lot, Ren walked toward his shiny new car. “This is your car?” Isaac said in amazement. “Sure it is,” Ren replied. “My best friend, Todd, would be so jealous,” Isaac shared. They climbed into the car, and Ren fired up the powerful engine. He revved it up a few times, showing off. Then he put it in gear and pulled out of the parking lot. Isaac asked him to turn left on Beach Avenue and head down a couple of blocks to the football facilities. “Wow, this is impressive,” Ren mentioned. “You have not been here before?” Isaac asked. “Didn’t you do a campus visit before you decided?” Isaac continued. “No, the scholarship offer and everything was a pretty quick process. Did not have a chance to see the campus before,” Ren replied. “My process was also very quick, but growing up close to Ames, I have gotten to go to several games,” Isaac shared. After a couple of hours of driving around town, they headed back to their dorm to eat and crash for the night. Tomorrow was going to be a big day.