Page 85 of The Backup Plan
She kept her chin high and gritted her teeth so they didn’t chatter while she waited for Mindy to reply. The paper on the desk looked childlike from Avery’s upside-down vantage point—just colorful boxes and black lines—and she wondered if she should take it back and just leave.
“I think I won’t reassign you yet, Avery.” She slid a fingertip lightly over a blue-green edge of the paper and inspected the color on her hand. “In any case, please call me Mindy.”
TWENTY-FIVE
Shoot for the Moon
CAMERON
John Keyes looked up from his desk and silently motioned Cameron to sit. “What’s got you up so early, Porter? You don’t start for twenty minutes.”
Cam slid a thin packet of papers across the desk. “This is Cory Thatcher’s weekly schedule. Blue is ball, yellow is school, pink is media and similar obligations. For comparison, here’s how I’ve spent the last three weeks, two of those around losses.”
Keyes furrowed his brows. “That’s a lot of pink.”
“Coach, one of the best in the country has six more hours for school and football every week because his P.R. and media are efficient, well-organized, and professional. My schoolwork has suffered, and I don’t think I’m playing as well as I could be. Ask Glamis. I’ve come to practice late and in makeup. I can do more than I am, if I’m not being dressed up and shoved in front of microphones and cameras for half an hour here, half an hour there. Marshall North at Rutgers and Dale Gellar at Louisville have lighter schedules than Cory. Even Hayden Hamilton at?—”
“I get it, Porter.” He thumbed through the pages of Cory’s schedule, brows lifting. “Does Thatcher sleep?”
“Not to my knowledge, Coach.”
“How do you know him?”
“We have a mutual friend who used to play here.”
Keyes set down the papers and narrowed his eyes. “What did he tell you?”
Cam pasted a grin on his face and kept his voice light. “He suggested I ask for your support in drawing some hard lines with our media team. Frankly, I think he was just tired of hearing me complain instead of taking action to fix things. Cory’s a take-action kind of guy.”
“Oh. Yeah, that’s what I hear.”
“I’m here to play for this team, Coach, and I’m proud to do that. I’m proud to represent these guys. But the non-football part of this job is not sustainable for me. I’ll be a fifth-year senior to finish my degree program as it is, and I will come back every year and play all of my remaining eligibility for you, if you help me make this work. I can’t stay if I have to half-ass the reasons I am here.”
Keyes studied the papers again. “You seriously plan on staying in school five years for your B.F.A.? Not drafting early for a big paycheck?”
“My bank account is not suffering, and if I can develop a healthier working relationship with the media team, I’ll be open to some deals in the off-season. I have no reason to leave early.” He straightened his shoulders. “If I wanted to blow through this place on my way to Canton, I’d have picked a different major.”
“I didn’t know media had been rough on you, Porter. You always do fine in the interviews.”
“A lot of the people on our crew are really nice. And they’re students, too. We all have to get to class. But if I need to talk to one podcaster and get three photos and review a contract with some sponsor all in the same week, let’s get it done in one block of time. It benefits all of us.”
“I can see that.”
“And it would be nice if the social media photos featured some other players besides me, Benny, and Travon. Why not get some receivers out there, or hell, anyone on defense or special teams? This team is stacked with interesting guys.”
“Share the pain?”
“Share the credit. We’re a team. At other schools, they snap candids at practice and games and use those. No hero poses. Show us grinding in practice jerseys. Show us running drills and lifting. Photography and journalism students need practice getting difficult shots. The artists who shoot for the league are the finest in the world. UND students can get experience with us.”
Cameron watched his coach squint at Cory’s schedule and think. He could scoop up a talented, uncomplaining quarterback and bench Cam if he wanted to, but the season looked good, and he wouldn’t boot him off the team for new blood even if it didn’t. One bad hit, and he’d need his backup that knew the playbook.
An unspoken threat lingered in the air between them. With Jordan’s mysterious exit over the summer, if Cameron transferred out after a successful season only months later, something would look very wrong with their program. Or, he could stay for three-and-a-half more seasons, with a handshake agreement neither of them could enforce, and Keyes could build a team around him.
Questions from the outside were the last thing the coach wanted, Cory said, and Cameron had just enough leverage to imply that he knew why—even if he didn’t.
“Some good ideas, Porter. Remind me who I’m supposed to talk to about all this. Whose word makes it a deal?”
“I think Shelby Wentz is the crew chief this year.” Cam bit his cheek to hide a smile when his coach grimaced. “Oh, I see you’ve met her.”