Perfect Season by Tim Green

you’ve got to show your stuff to everyone else. Let it happen. Don’t be in such a rush. I know what I’m doing.”
    Troy felt a bit calmer. He did trust Seth. He had a hundred questions, but the tone of Seth’s voice kept him from speaking. He remembered a similar situation when Seth had been coaching the Georgia Junior League All-Star team. He didn’t start Troy then, either. Instead, he waited until it was clear to everyone that Troy was the best player at the position. He’d get his chance. He’d just have to wait, something he hated but could do.
    Seth wandered away, barking out instructions occasionally but for the most part letting the other coaches take care of business with their individual players.
    After about ten plays, Seth shouted, “Okay, get some backups in!”
    The coaches started making substitutions. Troy, Chuku, two more receivers—Spencer and Levi Kempka—and some other kids Troy didn’t know got to join the huddle. Troy called the play Coach Sindoni gave him and went to the line. Troy took the snap, dropped back, and threw a perfect strike to Chuku down the sideline. The offense hooted and hollered, loving the fact that they finally scored on the defense. Troy showed very little emotion, instead calling the offense back into the huddle. The next play, Troy threw a touch pass to Levi over the middle for a twenty-yard gain. The third play was a deep out to Spencer, thrown on a flat line, and caught by Chuku, who planted the toes of both feet inside the white line before going out of bounds. The two older quarterbacks had run the same plays but come nowhere near Troy’s accuracy throwing the ball.
    Finally, Troy went back to Chuku on a comeback, perfectly timed, and something they couldn’t have done without days of hard work at the Jets practice field with Ty. The defender overran Chuku, who darted into the end zone. In half the number of plays, Troy had scored twice when the older players hadn’t scored at all. Seth blew his whistle and shouted for the team to take a water break. On the far side of the field was a water horse, a section of pipe with holes every couple of feet so a dozen players could drink at the same time. Troy jogged over with the rest of the team and took his drink.
    When he finished, Troy walked right by Reed. As he passed, Reed whapped him in the back of the head. Troy staggered and nearly fell over. He spun around, red-faced. The rest of the players stared at him to see what he’d do. Reed had three inches on him and about fifty pounds. The veins in his muscular forearms swelled above his fists and the barbed-wire tattoo twitched.
    â€œCome on,” Reed snarled. “What you gonna do about it?”

CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
    TROY GLARED FOR A few seconds, unblinking.
    â€œHey!” Chuku stepped up with his grin. “How about a little brotherly love here? I know you all ain’t brothers , but in Baltimore we’d call each other brothers anyway and it’s not a race thing, either. I got plenty of white brothers. ”
    Chuku patted Grant Reed on the back as if the two of them were old friends and Reed had no idea what to do.
    Troy used the opening to turn and walk away.
    Â 
    He felt the disappointment in the players around him. They were looking for a showdown, but Troy knew better. He wasn’t stupid. Getting into a fistfight with Reed could get him hurt and in trouble.
    â€œThat’s right, run, you little wimp.”
    Troy’s ears burned.
    â€œDon’t mind him, Troy,” Chuku warned. “He’s mixing up his bark and his bite is all.”
    Troy stopped and turned, keeping his head high. “Last I checked, this isn’t a fight club. It’s a football team, and I bet some of these guys are tired of getting their butts kicked every Friday night. That’s where I come in, because you gotta have a good quarterback to win .”
    Reed closed the gap between them,