Review of "Football Champ," by Tim Green

Review of

Football Champ, by Tim Green ISBN 9780061626890


Five out of five stars

 This is the third book in the Football Genius series, where Troy White is a football savant. All he has to do is watch a football team in action for a few series and he is capable of predicting what play they will run next. It took some time, but once he convinced Atlanta Falcons linebacker Seth Halloway and the Falcons coaching staff of his ability, they were sold. Troy now stands on the sidelines next to the defensive coordinator and when he sees the personnel and the formation, he tells the coach what the play will be. The coordinator then sends in the signal to Seth who informs his teammates regarding what defense to play.

 Troy’s mother now works in the PR department for the Falcons and she is involved with Seth. Troy’s two best friends Nathan and Tate(female) are his schoolmates and football teammates. Nathan is a lineman and Tate is their placekicker. Seth is now the coach of Troy’s football team and they are poised to make a run for the state championship.

 Things start to unravel when a nasty reporter named Peele spots Troy on the sidelines and starts digging into his role. The public explanation is that Troy is a ball boy, but he never leaves the coaches side. Peele has a deep grudge against Seth, for it was a hit by Seth that injured Peele and effectively ended his football career.

 There are two main tracks to this story, Troy’s role with the Falcons and his place on his youth football team. There are complications regarding how Troy’s mother got her job with the Falcons, accusations of steroid use by Seth and a nasty man and his equally nasty son, where the father used to coach Troy’s team. Troy gets a quick education on the dark facts of life regarding fame and where it puts you in the public eye.

 This is a great story, made even better because Tate is depicted as an equal to Nathan and Troy. She is decisive and when a powerful running back is about to return a kick for a touchdown and decides to just run her over, she knocks him on his A. When difficult things need to be done, Tate never takes a pass. The story also ends with a cliffhanger regarding Troy’s absent father that is a tickler, making you want to read books four and five.