"Friday Night Lights meets Unbroken." --Tony Reali "One of the
most profound stories you will ever read." --Ian O'Connor "Plaschke
delivers a masterpiece." --Jeff Pearlman
From L.A. Times columnist and ESPN Around the Horn panelist Bill
Plaschke, a story of tragedy, triumph, and the remarkable power of high
school football in one small California town
On November 8, 2018, the Camp Fire ravaged the town of Paradise,
California. The fire, which burned up to 80 acres per minute, killed 86
people, and nearly every building and home in the town was reduced to
ashes. In a single day, Paradise, a proud working-class town in the
foothills of the Sierra Nevadas, saw its population fall from 25,000 to
2,000.
The Paradise High football team had long been the town's source of joy
and inspiration. But in the wake of the fire, their season was abruptly
cancelled on the eve of the playoffs. Their championship hopes were
gone. Their program's survival seemed doubtful--it wasn't even clear
whether Paradise High would continue to exist.
Coach Rick Prinz had planned to retire that year after guiding the
Paradise High Bobcats for two decades. But after the fire forever
altered his beloved town, he realized he couldn't walk away. What ensued
was the challenge of a lifetime. Of the 104 football players at
Paradise, 95 had lost their homes. His varsity squad, which had stood 76
strong the previous season, was down to 22. Most of those who remained
were homeless, sleep-deprived, lost. On the first day of spring
practice, on a debris-ridden patch of grass at nearby Chico Airport,
Prinz's team didn't even have a football. It was the humble beginning to
a memorable journey.
Bill Plaschke, longtime columnist for the Los Angeles Times, followed
the Paradise Bobcats throughout a most remarkable season. In this
gripping, deeply-reported story of tragedy and resilience, Plaschke
reveals the unique power of sports to unite, to inspire, and to heal. As
the Paradise players fought to rebuild their broken lives, they found
strength in the support of their teammates--and as football returned to
Paradise, so, too, did the spirit of the town itself.
