“Working a little overtime?” Tiger said—“How’s the wife? Hey—let’s turn off that light—look, there’s a light—” He pointed at the dim light in the car, which had come on when the Chief pulled open the door.
Poldaski switched off his light. Tiger saw the revolver in his hand, leveled at them. He grinned.
“Hey, what’s that in your hand?”
Still in a daze, the Chief looked down at his hand. Tiger
watched him for half a minute at least, staring at that
hand. He felt the maid trembling, though possibly just a little less, against him. He gave her a squeeze.
“Put it away, John,” he said quietly.
Slowly, the Chief did so. He stood there. Tiger surveyed the rest of his armory. Certainly it was formidable, he mused, almost bemused. Though now he grew sad. He looked a long time at the Chief, who just continued standing there.
“Coming to the game, John?” Tiger asked, finally. Definitely, the maid’s trembling was less. She remained buried against him.
“Yeh—Tiger—” The Chief replied, mumbling really. He stared at them.
“Who’s out there with you, John?” Tiger now asked, casually.
A moment’s pause.
“We’ll beat them,” Tiger said, “Might be a little rough, though. And tough.”
“Yeh—” The Chief mumbled.
“I’m using Joe Moran for this one, at End. We worked out some new plays—”
“Yeh?” Poldaski asked, interested.
“Yeh, we had to. Other ones were built around Jim Green—”
The Chief stiffened at that name, but he was definitely glad to hear about Joe Moran. He lived just a couple of doors from him, as a matter of fact. Sometimes he shot a few games with his old man, up at Sam’s. He wasn't bad. Last yąar they had gone hunting together, couple of times. In the mountains—
Pretty Maids All in a Row 351 “Who you startin’ at half?” Poldaski slowly asked.
“Left?”
“Right.”
“Pope, I think.”
“He’s good.”
“You’re not kidding there, John, that’s gonna be one to replace, huh?” He chuckled, “You want the job?”
The Chief chuckled too, somewhat. Years ago he had been a pretty fair back, of course, under old Hink Henderson, right here at Sawyersville. He might have got a scholarship, only his grades weren’t too good, and then, anyhow—along came the war.
“Old Fifi at full?” He now asked.
“Sure,” Tiger said, “Who else?”
“There’s a boy—”
“See him go last week?”
“Jesus, he don’t need holes—”
“You said it.”
“Just get down to the ten—hand off to him—■"
“That’s what we always do.”
“What about Jerry?”
“I’ll start him.”
“He alright now?”
“Oh, yeh. Wasn’t broken.”
A pause.
“Tough about those Practices though—huh, Tiger?”
“What can ya do?”
‘‘We’ll take them though.”
“Think so?”
“I think so.”
“Geez, I hope so.”
“Keep your eye on Moran.”
“No kiddin’—you really got some good new ones?” “Beauts.”
“From the T?”
“Mostly.”
“Deployed wide?”
“Wait—I’ll come out and tell ya—I’ll show у a—”
Tiger eased his way out of the car, gently sliding away from Jeannie, leaving her sitting there, fairly calmed down. »
"Who's she?” The Chief murmured to Tiger, outside the car.
“Jeannie Bonni,” Tiger replied, "Know her?”
“Oh, yeh—” said the Chief, “Yeh. Nice kid,” He said. “Real nice kid,” Tiger told him.
“I go to her old man,” said John.
“Yeh? So do I.”
“Good man.”
“I like him.”
“Real nice kid—”
“I like her.”
“Did I scare her?”
“Aw—not too much.”
“She alright now?”
“Oh yeh.”
“Some dentist. No kiddin’—” The Chief said.
“I know it,” Tiger said, “Here—John—got a pad and pencil? I’ll show you—” He added.
The Chief, after a search, obliged.
“Let’s go over there,” Tiger said, indicating the benches near the diamond. He stuck his head in the car and murmured a few words to the maid. Then he walked with the Chief to the benches. They sat down.
“Shine your light on it,” Tiger said. Poldaski did so.
Tiger expertly sketched two opposing teams on the pad. He began drawing lines this way, that way, just about all ways. It put the Chief in a spin. Tiger chuckled.
“This is the age of razzle-dazzle, red-hot football,” he told John, who chuckled also. “Little different from your days, huh, John?” He added.
“You’re not kiddin’.”
“Listen, that old single wing was pretty good though, let me tell you—”
“It just about went out when you hit State, right, Tiger?” ‘That’s right, John.”
“This 7’ is what gets me though—Jesus!”
“Yeh, well, I’ll show you some with that too. In a while. But take a look at this, John. See here, that’s Dink there of course, at quarterback—” Poldaski nodded. “Well, this is T-Fifty-four Left Decoy Pass Right Five On Two—” He paused. “With me?” Poldaski nodded. “Check. Well that’s how it was anyhow with Jim, see here he is cutting out and in and swinging hard right after deploying left, notice the
Pretty Maids All in a Row 353 decoy there too. See it?” Poldaski nodded, slowly. “Check. Well, here’s old Dink faking off to Pope, and Jerry, and getting set now to drop back—here he is—and left—that’s it—there it is—that’s the beauty of it there, see?” The Chief nodded. “Check. Right. So—what happens?” He paused. Poldaski waited. “Well, with Joe Moran we switched the fake on Pope and flicked him left, while Beep there on the line does the good work, opening up that decoy hole—see it there? Right there. That’s great. That was Ponce’s idea, I don’t mind telling you, John. That kid is great, and no kidding about that at all. O.K. So there goes Pope and all hell breaks loose. What happens now? He’s plastered at the secondary—carrying nothing, of course —while Dink juggles around, spinning right, and hands off, though he doesn’t, and there goes Jerry into the line— drawing the rest of them off—he's carrying nothing. Of course. And that’s the second beauty of it, John. See what I mean. No kidding, it foxed hell out of our defensive boys at Scrimmage the other night. It all happens so fast of course you don’t even know it. But watch out for it. O.K. So what happened? He hands it back, see what 1 mean? Just like that, it takes half a second. And all the time Joe Moran’s drifting left. Left, I said—”
“Wow—” Poldaski said.
“Yeh—now—there he goes—see him there—he’s going —who sees him going? Bill Linksi there, the other End, he’s deployed too—and decoying too. What does he do? Look —watch—just look.” Poldaski gave a low whistle, as Tiger’s hand raced here and there on the paper— “And so? Before they know what’s hit them, Joe’s out there, alone, open—Dink’s right—see him there, well protected, though, Hell, by now he doesn’t need it, getting set there— right—he flings it—What a catch, man! What a pass! Chalk up another one!”
“Goddamn,” Poldaski said, astounded, admiring it all, though in truth, baffled totally.
“That’s one,” Tiger said, grinning.
Poldaski nodded, studying the pad, “Wow Wow—” He said.
“Now take the Jump Pass—remember that? We scored our first TD last week on that—”
“Oh yeh—” The Chief said.
“Well, get this now. And we can do this because Dink can jump and pass a mile, you know that—”
“What a kid!”
“Is he! Notre Dame’s getting him, you know—'*