High school junior D.J. staggers under the weight of caring for her badly injured brother, her responsibilities on the dairy farm, a changing relationship with her friend Brian, and her own athletic aspirations.

Rafe Khatchadorian's new year at middle school is starting to look depressingly like the old one, except that art class is going well--and when he joins the flag-football team and demonstrates some talent as a running-back, he discovers a way of dealing with his bullying nemesis and teammate, Miller the Killer.

When the Hornets lose their quarterback for the season and the replacement lacks the talent to take charge, the coach picks a solid receiver as emergency quarterback.

Bobby Longbeak is the flashy wide receiver for the Wild Turkeys, but now his antics have cost his team two games--so after some sage advise from retired receiver Ocho Uno, this turkey resolves to turn over a new wing, and concentrate on teamwork.

When Marcus moves to a new town, he doesn't have any friends. While practicing football for impending tryouts, he strikes up an unlikely friendship with former NFL star Charlie Popovich, nicknamed 'The King of Pop.' Charlie is a charismatic prankster, and the best football player Marcus has ever seen. But when his behavior starts getting more and more erratic, Marcus learns the secret that Charlie's family is desperate to hide.