When life presents you with an opportunity, you grab it by the throat. That’s exactly what Arroyo did in Saturday’s CIF championship win over Rancho Mirage. And that’s exactly why Arroyo is a champion today and for eternity.

What took place on Saturday night was a life lesson as much as it was a championship moment. It’s one that football can teach better than any sport. It applies, or at least it should, to everything you do. For the rest of their lives, the Arroyo football team will know that when you get a chance to create your own destiny, you do it. And you do it with aplomb.

A job you want? Go after it hard.

A girl you want? Go after her hard.

A goal you have? Go reach it no matter what.

A man has to be man enough to do what Arroyo did last night. And he’s got to be man enough to live with the consequences, good or bad, regrets and all. Life will certainly throw its share of curveballs at the Arroyo players in the coming years. But they’re going to better equipped than most to deal with them.

Had Arroyo failed on its two-point try, perhaps some would have questioned head coach Jim Singiser’s decision to go for two. But they’d be wrong. Singiser made the right move, win or lose. He believed in his team. He went against the grain (to a degree) because he thought his line could protect, his quarterback could get outside the pocket and his receiver could make a tough catch going to the ground.

This “gamble” came on the biggest stage at arguably one of the top two or three biggest moments in Arroyo football history. The Knights made their move. It paid off. They’ll now enjoy the spoils forever. Not a bad a trade off. Lesson learned.