GRIDIRON GLORY
By
Curtis Bishop's position on the sports' fiction team is assured. Not so his heroes -- they're always in trouble. This time it's Bozo Brock, a boy who's built to maul the opposition in any football game. For one year he had been expected to be the fullback on the high school team, and all the plays were based on his talents. Then he failed English and geometry and quit school leaving the team out on a limb. The next year he came back, hoping to manage in his courses and to be able to earn a football scholarship to college. It's a struggle -- the teachers and the coach doubt whether they can depend on him -- but Bozo pulls up on his cleated-boot straps, puts the effort into learning his subjects, and starts (for the first time) paying attention to his coach's advice. Nothing very startling about this sports' story, but it's solid and sympathetic.