Review of
Victory
Pass,
by Burgess Leonard
Four out of five stars
The primary
plot device in this book is one that has been used many times in stories about
intercollegiate athletics. Unfortunately, it is even more true now than it was
in 1950 when the book was published.
Melville
College is an institution with a football team that struggled the previous
year, it is a small school in a big-school conference. Like many colleges, it
has many fine traditions, for this story the most important are that academics
has always come first and that no athletic scholarships are awarded. The second
is that students are on an honor system during exams, the professors hand them
out and then leave the room. It is up to students to police the exams, try any
cheaters and recommend punishment.
Dan McCloud is
the captain of the football team and the leader of the student government. His
father is also the Dean of Students, an internationally known mathematician
that believes the role of Melville is to educate the next generation.
After
struggling on the football field last year, one where Dan McCloud excelled in
many losing causes and won great honors, wealthy alumni step in and demand that
a new coach named Dutch Ruppert be hired. Ruppert is unscrupulous, using
whatever means necessary he brings in a team of what are essentially hired
players and promises great victories. Of course, the opportunity to cheer for a
successful team is something that excites nearly every follower of Melville
College.
However, the
battle of ideals and tradition versus winning is not a pretty one that is
fought with honor and strict adherence to the truth. Ruppert and his imported players
are arrogant with a sense of entitlement and Dan and his fellow lettermen must
fight back from being relegated to the scrubs. It is a noble quest and one that
the reader can cheer on. Of course, this is fiction and the reality is that the
ideals of education are rarely upheld when they clash with the prospect of a
winning football team.
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