Page 142 of The Backup Plan

Tom B.

Thanks, I hate it.

Theo F.

Malik, they left you in the Big Ten group? Buddy. How’s LSU?

Malik W.

Fish! I lurk on here for the gossip. SEC rep in this chat is trash. No disrespect, Ethan.

Joe B.

I stayed for the same reason, but the best migrate south, Malik.

Malik W.

You know I learned it from the greatest. That ring looks good on you, my man.

Cameron’s mouth hung open as he scrolled back to the check-in full of screen names. Malik, benched by meningitis at the start of last season, was in top form in Louisiana and poised to follow Joe as another number-one pick out of LSU. Chad, the starter-turned-backup who came in clutch to save his team’s national championships twice, would drink free in Kansas City for the rest of his life. And Tom, the sixth-round pick from UM who… no.

Theo F.

On behalf of the QB1 chat, welcome back, everyone. For those of you not in the know, your bouncers tonight are Ethan Engel and Cory Thatcher.

In the ring are Cameron Porter, UND, and Hayden Hamilton, doing an extreme dishonor to my beloved alma mater.

Hayden H.

See, I said on Day One that this was Fight Club.

Cameron P.

Your brilliance and foresight truly know no bounds.

Theo F.

Hayden, you also said “One down, nice work, boys” to your offense tonight during an injury time-out when a member of Cam’s defense was on the ground with his leg broken in two places.

And you said it pretty loudly, accusing them of playing dirty while you had a laugh.

Tom B.

You don’t belong in a group that’s about the integrity of this position if you can’t just take a knee and shut up during an injury time out. That’s literally the easiest thing we do.

Theo F.

Cam, anything you want to add?

Cameron P.

Hayden has an incredibly talented team. It is always a privilege to play guys of that caliber. They looked disgusted by what he said.

This isn’t about a rivalry or a game. That team deserves better.

Justin F.

Aw thanks.