Roughnecks

A colorful Louisiana setting and a day-in-the-life format that details a football star's preparation for a championship game are a winning combination for this first novel. Travis Cody's life spells success in Oil Camp, La., a place so crazy for high school football that parents put miniature footballs in baby boys' bassinets and dress them in ""Future Roughneck"" T-shirts. Travis is proud to be a Roughneck, but is plagued by a game earlier in the season in which he let Jericho Grooms of arch-rival Pineview beat him badly on a play--causing a loss of both the game and his confidence. Now, he has a chance to even the score and win the state championship. Some readers may get bogged down in all the football lingo (""...Webb planned to play him up front and in the middle both ways, center on O and noseguard on D""), but those who can follow will be rewarded. Cochran, a former sportswriter, takes Travis through Saturday's endless game day--breakfast, working at the Texaco station, hormonal longings for his girlfriend and, finally, preparing for the game in the dressing room, where ""The smell... is a potent mixture of Pine Sol, Atomic Balm, and sweat, with a trace of dirty socks and mildew around the edges."" Unlike many sports novels, the highlight here is the build-up to the game, rather than the game itself. And, face-to-face on the football field at last, Travis discovers Grooms is not the evil enemy, but a boy just like himself. At the conclusion, as Travis blocks his rival, he is a conduit for Cochran's uplifting message to teens: ""Anything is possible, anything at all."" Ages 12-up. (Aug.)