Page 101 of The Backup Plan

Hayden

No. He sounds like all the speeches. We, we, we.

Cameron

So who’s talking trash?

Hayden

Students. Alumni. Anyone looking at the news saying I’m not the guy because I can’t win every game with a team that lost a quarter of its starters at the last minute this summer.

Cory

I know our fan bases have century-old beef, but in all honesty, and without any bias, in my entirely objective opinion, speaking as a friend, YOUR FANS ARE FERAL.

Marshall

Hammy, you can’t let the noise get to you. They don’t mean it personally. They just want to win.

In a really unhealthy and frankly scary way.

Hayden

They’re just reading what’s out there. I could lob a pass to myself and catch it in the end zone and not even make the highlights unless we won.

Cory

You need to stop reading the sports news. Blogs, social media, all of it. It’s unhealthy, win or lose. It doesn’t help any of us to be called hero or villain.

Hayden

How do you know how we all played every week if you don’t read anything?

Cory

Limited social media, sorry. I have an account I use only to follow official school accounts, because none of those will be doomsayers. No pundits or analysts, no fan sites.

I know we bash our P.R. sometimes, but they never bash us, even on our bad days.

Marshall

Dang. I should send them a card.

Cameron

Someone please give me my P.R. spin for this. Avery’s roommate is one of the OMG tHe QuaRteRbAck!1!! girls, and she walked in on us.

Cory

Time out.

Cameron

The girl has thoughts about how I look in football pants. And out of them. That’s all I’ll say.

Marshall

Private lives are different, if you keep them private.