49 pages • 1 hour read
The Underdogs
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Chapters 22-28Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 22 Summary
The match against Cannondale is going well. The Bulldogs benefit from Toby’s defensive presence and a touchdown he makes during the game’s first half. As soon as Toby fumbles a catch, though, his father starts in with badgering comments and insults. Even Toby’s stronger moves merit unkind sarcasm, such as “That’s more like it” (183). Toby’s performance improves in the second half after his father leaves for work.
The final score is 35-13 in the Bulldogs’ favor. Will is thrilled at their first victory.
Chapter 23 Summary
Over the next week of practices, Will sees how much coaching fulfills his father. He also witnesses Tim’s newfound respect for Hannah’s skills, who admits, “I was wrong about her” (187).
At the next game, Will notices right away that the opposing team, the Merrill Lions, is taking cheap shots at the Bulldogs. One Merrell player steps on Will’s hand while another pushes Will’s head to the ground as he tries to get up.
Hannah makes a touchdown. Although the play is clearly over, she is roughly tackled. Later, after another touchdown, her kick is blocked; the blocker also proceeds to tackle her. Joe takes her out of the game, and despite Hannah’s pleas, Joe keeps her out of the second half.
Will listens to Hannah’s complaint postgame but tells her she is “acting like a jerk” (192). He questions whether she wants to win as a team or only to prove her point about being good enough for tackle football. Hannah sees his point, and she agrees that the emphasis should be on succeeding as a team. Even so, she stubbornly insists that she deserves to be treated the same as the male players. Will agrees to speak up if his father sidelines her in the future. He feels some nerves when he inadvertently uses the word “like” with regard to how he feels about her. After their conversation, Hannah leaves him with, “I like you too” (195).
Chapter 24 Summary
Will goes to Shea Stadium after dinner to think about their wins, but he cannot help but worry about injuries and not having enough team members to play. Tim arrives, upset, and tells Will that his family is moving away.
Chapter 25 Summary
Tim’s father is taking advantage of a job transfer, and his family leaves in eight days. Tim has already asked his parents if he could live with Will long enough to finish the football season, but his father insists they make the move as a family. Tim’s last game as a Bulldog will be next weekend against Becker Falls. The boys agree to call and Skype to stay in touch, but Will knows that their friendship will never be the same.
Will goes home. His father offers to talk with him about Tim’s impending departure, but Will retreats to his room, sad to lose his best friend.
Chapter 26 Summary
Despite their best efforts to play a great game for Tim, the Bulldogs are losing to Becker Falls 19-14 by the start of the fourth quarter. Worse, Toby’s father has increased his arrogant, insulting commentary, calling out not just Toby’s mistakes but the decisions of the whole team and Will’s father.
Finally, Joe takes a timeout to deal with Mr. Keenan. He calls him down from the stands, and in hushed silence, Toby’s father leaves his seat and approaches Joe. Will waits for his father to confront Mr. Keenan, but Mr. Keenan leads with, “Your kids, starting with my kid, couldn’t stop a nosebleed today” (212). Will’s father agrees, then shocks everyone by asking Toby’s father if he will join him in coaching the team.
Chapter 27 Summary
Mr. Keenan wastes no time in directing the Bulldogs’ defensive moves, and his ideas work. With much stronger defensive strategies and Toby as the leader of the defensive line, the Bulldogs prevent Becker Falls from scoring again.
Through a series of effective plays, Will strategically gets the ball within a few yards of the goal line. In the next huddle, he tells the quarterback to give the ball to Tim.
Will makes a hard block, opening a hole for his best friend to make a touchdown. After the game, he gives the game ball to Tim as a keepsake. Will is glad to see Toby and Mr. Keenan walking to the parking lot together.
Chapter 28 Summary
After a victory pizza party, Will and Tim exchange goodbyes. Tim tells Will that the Bulldogs have to win the tournament and beat Castle Rock.
Will and Hannah begin to have lunch together at school. He appreciates her attempts to alleviate his sad mood, but he misses his best friend.
One afternoon, Will goes to sit by the river, and his father stops the mail truck to sit by him. Joe thanks Will for convincing him to coach. He admits that he has long blamed football for many of the difficulties in his life—not just his knee injury. Now, he loves the game again.
At that moment—despite the Castle Rock team’s advantages—Will reflects on how glad he is to be on the Forbes side of the river.
Chapters 22-28 Analysis
Will’s character development is key in this section. His personal arc shifts toward growth and maturity because of situations in which he has varying degrees of control. Throughout this section, his internal evolution becomes apparent through his decision-making, reactions to other characters, dialogue, interior monologue, and nonverbal communication. Among other things, Will’s responses to Hannah are more sensible and assured. He no longer goes along to get along with her, nor does he make irrational promises. After the game against Merrell, he stops her short by judging her tone and words, and then he takes charge: “I listened to you, now you listened to me […]. Did you join this team just to prove a point or to win the game?” (192). In this moment, Will’s bearing toward Hannah is measured and mature. It takes Hannah aback without insulting her pride, and it gets her to reflect seriously on her intentions. His actions and words demonstrate increased interpersonal intelligence and mark a step in his coming-of-age process.
Will shows growth and change in the way that he reacts to circumstances beyond his control as well. For example, when Tim announces that he is moving after the Becker Falls game, Will’s reaction might have been one of anger or resentment toward Tim’s parents. Instead, he remains positive and projects optimism. He also behaves generously in Tim’s final game, arranging to give Tim the chance to score the winning goal. He likewise shows increased maturity when he returns to his spot by the river across from Castle Rock. Instead of wistfully thinking about that town’s successes and lucky breaks, and wondering—as he did early in the novel—what it would be like to take advantage of Castle Rock’s opportunities, he reflects on his own blessings and experiences satisfaction with his team and hometown: “He was happy now on this side of the river. He would have been a lot happier if his best friend hadn’t left here. But he didn’t want to be there anymore. He wanted to be here” (226). Once Will realizes that his life in Forbes is indeed the right life for him, he can step self-assuredly into a leadership role in his team and town. This is seen in the last section of the novel when he publishes an open letter to the town, which helps guarantee the team’s success.
A surprising complication occurs in this section’s rising action when Will’s father calls Mr. Keenan down from the stands, having had enough of the man’s insulting commentary toward his team. The mood is suspenseful as Will anxiously waits for his father to put Mr. Keenan in his place: “This is what we’ve been waiting for,” Will thinks, “somebody to tell this guy off” (211). But in a plot twist, Will’s father doesn’t clash with Mr. Keenan. Rather, Joe requests that Mr. Keenan help the team instead. The impact of Tim’s departure is blunted by Mr. Keenan’s entrance. Despite being an obnoxious bystander, he proves to be a talented assistant coach. His penchant for football strategy provides the Bulldogs with what they need to keep winning, setting the team up for success in the following chapters.
Finally, this section concretizes several major themes. Up until this point, The Impact of Economic Hardship on Youth was discernable only from backstory events like the factory closure and the struggle to fund a football team. In this section, Tim must move away as a result of Forbes’s terrible economy, which devastates Will and imposes meaningful difficulties on the Bulldogs’ remaining members. The Power of Teamwork for Achieving Goals was previously made clear by the Bulldogs’ “unified front” reaction to the low-blow attack moves by opponents in the Merrell Lions game. However, it becomes even more evident in this section when Will challenges Hannah to play for the team, not just for herself. The Challenges and Rewards of Leadership are also developed as Mr. Keenan’s defensive coaching talents begin to shine and Will moves into a leadership role. These factors all coalesce in the book’s final climactic chapters.
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