"I wonder if Steven and Jonathan have been picked up yet," Joe said, a nervous edge to his voice.

"There’s only one other police car here. So at least one of them, if not both, must have already been taken in for questioning," Frank tried to reassure him. Joe felt Frank’s hand on his elbow and a gentle nudge. "Come on, let’s go."

*****

First period was almost over when the quiet of the classroom was broken by a P.A. announcement.

"Joseph Hardy, please report to the principal’s office. Joe Hardy to the principal’s office."

Joe flushed in embarrassment as everyone turned to look at him. "Well Mr. Hardy, don’t keep the principal waiting," his teacher said jokingly.

Joe stood, wincing slightly, and tried to shove his book, papers and pen into his backpack as quickly as possible. He walked as fast as he could manage, leaving the stares and whispers of his classmates behind. Once out in the hall, he stopped and gingerly placed his backpack on one shoulder before resuming his journey.

Arriving at Principal Stanning’s office, Joe was told to have a seat and wait. Nervously bouncing one leg up and down, he heard raised voices and strained to make out what they were saying. He caught the words "first game" and "forfeit" but not much else. After several more minutes of his imagination running wild, Joe saw the door finally open. He stared in surprise as Andy Tapping, the junior varsity football coach, motioned him inside. Joe hurried into the office still in a mild state of shock and heard the door click shut behind him.

"Have a seat, Joseph," Principal Stanning pointed towards a chair. "Don’t worry, you’re not in any trouble," he added smiling. Coach Tapping also smiled reassuringly as Stanning sat on the edge of his desk and stared at Joe for a moment.

"I hardly know where to begin. I had no idea hazing even existed here at Bayport High, let alone that it had turned so violent. I honestly thought the incident with Heath Webb was isolated – an aberration – and that it had been taken care of once I spoke with Coach Miller." Principal Stanning stopped and shook his head sadly. "I’m ashamed to admit I was quite out of touch with what had been going on here, apparently for years.

"Steven and Jonathan were arrested at their homes this morning and are being charged as we speak. Clayton Martin and Mike Walton were picked up for questioning prior to the start of classes. They may be charged with the same criminal offenses as the other two, or shown leniency, depending on the extent of their involvement and their willingness to cooperate. Coach Miller has been suspended, effective immediately, pending a full investigation by the school board and the authorities."

Joe sat silently, a little overwhelmed at the swiftness of events. Other than being the catalyst for what had happened, Joe still wasn’t quite sure why he’d been summoned to the office. His nervousness grew as he watched a look pass between the principal and coach. After a silent nod from the principal, Coach Tanning looked at Joe and began to speak.

"The reason you’re here, Joe, is the football team, specifically today’s game. Steven and Jonathan are both facing criminal charges. They’ve been expelled from school. With Coach Miller suspended, we’ve lost our coach, starting quarterback and receiver, and two other key players. I’m sure before the day is out we will have lost several more starters, depending on their involvement with the hazing and abuse." The coach stopped as Principal Stanning picked up the explanation.

"I’ve spoken with the state high school athletic association and explained the extenuating circumstances, hoping today’s game against Southport could be rescheduled for later in the season. They contacted Southport and left the decision solely up to them."

"As I’m sure you can guess," Coach Tapping broke in wryly, "they weren’t at all sympathetic to the fact that our starting players had been abusing the younger players for years, seemingly with the blessing of the coach. Their response was ‘play the game today as scheduled or forfeit’. Since we still technically have enough players to complete the roster, we have no choice but to play the game. And you will be our starting quarterback."

Joe felt his mouth drop open in complete shock, as he stared at the two men. "But… but… I can’t! I’m not ready! I don’t even know all the plays yet!" Joe stammered, well on his way to a full-blown panic.

"You know Tyler is injured and can’t play for at least a month," the coach said, referring to the senior who’d been acting as Steven’s backup. He smiled at Joe and continued in a soothing voice. "I’ll be coaching the team for the foreseeable future. Half of your receivers today will be freshmen and sophomores that you’ve been playing with on the junior high squad for years. I know what you’re capable of, Joe. If I didn’t think you could handle it, I would have forfeited the game immediately."

The two men sat back, apparently waiting for some kind of response from Joe, as one thought ran through his mind. ‘Talk about being stuck between a rock and a hard place!’

Joe didn’t have nearly the confidence in himself that the coach did, but how could he refuse? If he did, they’d have to forfeit the game! Joe was certain he couldn’t lead a ragtag team of inexperienced players to a victory, especially with the injuries he’d amassed over the past few weeks, but at least it would be an honest loss. Better than forfeiting and no one could say they gave up without even trying.

"You said it’d be mostly running plays? Not much passing?" Joe asked, subconsciously rubbing his sore ribs. He’d been studying the playbook and had most of the running plays down pat, but his knowledge of the passing plays was still pretty limited.

Coach Tanning looked at Joe and exchanged a worried glance with the principal. "Stand up, Joe."

Puzzled, Joe nevertheless did as he was asked. The coach stood and walked the few steps to Joe’s side. "May I?" he asked, tugging at the hem of Joe’s shirt.

Joe blushed slightly and nodded, lifting his arms a little. Tapping pulled his shirt up, exposing the mass of ugly purple bruises covering a good part of Joe’s torso. The coach shifted slightly, allowing the principal to also get a glimpse.

"Steven and Jonathan did that to you?" the principal asked, barely controlling the anger evident in his voice.

"Yes, sir," Joe mumbled.

Tanning shook his head in disgust and dropped Joe’s shirt. He stepped back and leaned against the desk. Crossing his arms over his chest he furrowed his brow in thought.

"I think we’d better get his parents’ permission before going any further," the principal advised.

"Agreed," Tanning responded, before addressing Joe once more. "If your parents agree to letting you play today, and if you still want to, we’ll have the trainers tape your ribs and we’ll get you some extra padding for protection. Since we’ll be running most of the plays you won’t have to aggravate those injuries by throwing and you shouldn’t have to take many hits, if any at all."

Joe regarded his coach with curiosity. "Do you really think we stand a chance of winning this game?"

Both the coach and principal seemed surprised at Joe’s question. Tanning was silent for a moment and Joe was sure he was trying to figure out how to answer Joe’s question honestly without completely destroying his confidence.

"You know, you’ll probably end up playing with receivers you know and are comfortable with. Unfortunately, a lot of juniors and seniors were involved in the hazing and may be suspended or expelled by game time. Pulling off an upset victory isn’t completely out of the realm of possibility. At the very least, I think we can make it a respectable game."

Joe chewed on his bottom lip, thinking about everything the coach had said. With mostly running plays, Joe felt he could take what little punishment might come his way. If the majority of the team was made up of guys he’d been playing with in junior high for the past few years, he was sure they could at least put some points on the board. But it was the knowledge that if Joe declined, Bayport High would be forced to forfeit their first game of the season, that made up his mind. It wouldn’t be a very auspicious beginning.

Joe Hardy had never been a quitter and he wasn’t about to start now! While the odds were definitely stacked against him, Joe realized there was a chance – a very small chance – that he might actually be able to lead the team to an upset victory. He smiled, thinking how cool it would be to be the hero of the game in his very first start on the varsity squad. Joe looked first at the coach and then the principal and smiled.