Bright Hopes. Pat Warren

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СКАЧАТЬ out onto the field, she blew her whistle and waited for them to join her. “Okay, fellas. I want to see you divide into teams and practice the plays we worked on yesterday.” She frowned as she looked through the crowd. “Where’s Ricky Travis?”

      “He had work to do on his father’s farm this afternoon, Coach,” B.J. said. “Said to tell you he’ll be here in the morning.”

      She leveled her gaze. “I’ll talk to Ricky. If any of you see him before morning, you might remind him of rule number two. If you don’t come to practice, you don’t play in the games. There are no exceptions.”

      “Come on, Coach,” Moose said, “Ricky’s our quarterback.”

      “He is if he comes to practice. He won’t be if he misses. B.J., you play quarterback this afternoon. And fellas, remember what we went over yesterday. Be aware of each man around you, and of your opponent. You’ve got to protect the quarterback, not let him take hits. Especially since we’re down to one today. Okay, let’s go.”

      She jogged back to the sidelines and put on her sunglasses. Hunkering down near the fifty-yard line, she scribbled on her clipboard as the boys went into position.

      * * *

      SHE WAS WEARING pink today. Patrick couldn’t believe it. Did she have sweats in every color? he wondered as he stood at the far end of the bleachers. The boys were all in abbreviated uniforms and protective gear, mostly in drab colors. Pam stood out like a pink beacon across the field, her dark hair tied back with a piece of pink yarn. Damnedest sight he’d ever seen on a football grid.

      Why would a woman want to coach football? he asked himself, not for the first time since hearing of Pam Casals. She was attractive and talented. She could travel, do promotional work, put on running exhibitions, coach women’s basketball—any number of things. Why football?

      Was it the challenge, a climb-the-mountain-because-it’s-there type of thinking? She’d conquered running, now she wanted to conquer a man’s domain. Was she hoping to make the Titans into winners, thereby luring another college coaching offer? Or—God forbid—did she have her sights set on the pros? Was Tyler merely a stepping-stone to Pam Casals?

      Patrick ran a hand through his windblown hair. She was a hard one to call. She looked so feminine, so young. Yet watching the boys, he had to admit they were listening to her, following her instructions. The smart remarks and clowning had stopped. For nearly a week now, he’d come by for a few minutes every day, just to check on her methods and the team’s progress. It wasn’t sensational, but it wasn’t shabby, either.

      He’d stayed mostly out of sight, seeing that she was too occupied to notice his brief visits. A couple of the guys had glanced up, but they hadn’t come over. He’d noted that she was tough on discipline, something he tried to instill in his basketball team as well. He’d checked with several of the fellows off campus about how they were getting along, and except for the usual grumblings about workouts and diet, none had really complained about Pam specifically.

      Patrick watched her toss down her clipboard and leap into the air to catch a stray ball, her movements clean and sure, yet gracefully feminine. She was cute rather than beautiful. Not that he was here because of Pam as a woman. He owed it to his boys to keep an eye on their new coach, that was all. Leaning against the back bleacher, he saw her call them into a loose huddle and wondered what she was saying.

      * * *

      “THAT LAST PLAY was lousy,” Pam said, hands on her hips, eyes on her players. “Where’d you learn to hand off like that, B.J.?”

      “From Coach McCormick.”

      Pam turned aside thoughtfully. This had come up before and she’d ignored it. No more, she decided as she paced a short distance and returned to address them. “I told you from the start that we would learn to play football all over and that we’d be winners. I want you to forget everything else you’ve been told—no matter who told it to you—and do things my way. I’m not saying I’m always right. But doing plays the old way, you wound up near the cellar in the standings. Let’s try the new way and see if it works. If it doesn’t, I’ll bow out. Is that fair?”

      Exchanging uneasy and skeptical glances, the boys nodded.

      “Okay, then. Let’s run that play over again. On three, B.J., and I want to see some blocking, defense.” She jogged off the field and turned to watch them move into formation.

      Pam was hunched down observing, so deeply absorbed she didn’t hear anyone approach. The play went off beautifully, and B.J.’s receiver, Todd, caught the throw and ran clear. “That’s more like it,” she shouted out.

      “Where’d you learn that play?” Patrick asked from behind her.

      Startled, she nearly fell over from her awkward position. Rising, she glared at him. “What are you doing, sneaking up on me?”

      “I didn’t sneak. I walked around the field in plain view. I repeat, where’d you learn that play?”

      Pam wiped her damp palms on her sweatpants. “What difference does it make? It works and that’s what’s important.”

      “The plays Dale and I taught them last year worked, too, and most of the team know them backward and forward.”

      “If they worked so well, why did the team wind up in sixth place in a field of eight?”

      Patrick made a dismissing gesture. “Couldn’t be helped. We had a lot of injuries, our best running back moved out of town halfway through the season, and our kicker contracted mono and we didn’t have a backup man.”

      She shook her head. “Tough luck. Each position should have a backup and every team has injuries. Let’s face it, McCormick’s methods were outdated and unimaginative.” She didn’t add that she lumped Patrick’s routines in with the retired coach’s, but she could see by his stormy expression that he got the message.

      Becoming aware that the boys, waiting for the next call, were moving closer and enjoying their heated exchange, Pam turned to them. “Take a water break, guys,” she yelled out.

      As the players strolled off the field, Patrick got hold of his temper. “Listen, there’s no guarantee your new ways will work when these guys face other, more experienced teams, so don’t be so damn cocky. And don’t you be undermining my methods to them. I coach quite a few of the boys in basketball, and I don’t want you messing up their thinking.”

      “I haven’t said one word against you to those boys. Which is more than I can say about you and the way you’ve just happened to run into several of them and pump them for information.”

      Patrick felt his face flush and could have cheerfully popped the kid who’d blabbed to her. “I’ve never talked detrimentally about you.”

      Pam picked up her clipboard. “Maybe not, but you haven’t exactly spoken up on my behalf, either. Listen, we’re supposed to be on the same side, working for the same school. You could have encouraged them to give me a chance, to try things my way. But you chose not to. All right. I’ll win them over without you. It’s just a damn shame your ego’s so monumentally big you can’t accept that there are several ways to build a winning team and that yours might not be the only way.”

      Turning on her heel, she started across СКАЧАТЬ