Before the Opening

In the eighty-eighth minute, the U.S. won a corner. Lucas walked to the flag and held up two fingers. A rehearsed play. Mason curved from the near post toward the back post. Brooks waited near the penalty spot. The ball came in. Mason jumped and pulled two center backs with him. Brooks found space. But as he prepared to head it, a Colombian midfielder crashed into him from behind. The ball brushed over his hair and fell outside the box. Counterattack. Thirty seconds later, Colombia equalized. 1-1. When the final whistle went, the Rose Bowl did not erupt in boos. It produced something worse: confusion. The U.S. had won the images but not the match. Mason had played twenty minutes without scoring. Brooks had missed two chances.