Luck during warm-ups for the Colts preseason game against the Jets.

By Nelly Mendoza
Houston, T.X.

The final moments were the most exciting in the Colts-Jets preseason game on Thursday at MetLife Stadium, as the Colts tried to take the lead in the last quarter. The weather was warm and the sun had set in the sky. Anxious fans cheered their favorite players and booed each time the football slipped out of their hands.

The Colts, Andrew Luck’s team, lost. But even after the loss, Luck still has a lot to look forward to this season.

He is only 24, but the sports world is already expecting him to prove why he was chosen to replace Peyton Manning, the 38 year-old-quarterback that took the Colts to victory in Super Bowl XLI. He has an important weight on his back — Manning played with the Colts for 14 seasons.

The ties between Manning and Luck go back decades, to when their fathers, Archie Manning and Oliver Luck, played quarterback together for the Houston Oilers in the 1980s. The elder Manning mentored Luck. Now, the younger Luck is trying to follow in Peyton Manning’s famous footsteps.

Andrew Luck was born in Washington D.C., on a warm summer day, with a little bit of sunshine and some rain. Though he is the son of another football player, he was never forced to follow his father’s path. He played football not because his dad told him to — he did it for the love of the game.

What’s the reason the young quarterback is already starring in the NFL? It could be because he is 6’4” and does not fear leading others.

When he was asked to comment on the loss on Thursday by an ESPN reporter, he said, “Every player has very high expectations for each other and ourselves. That is the attitude that we love and we certainly showed it today.” Luck demonstrated that he is a team player and a leader on the field. He shows a confidence rare among players his age.