Medford, Texas
11:37 p.m.
At the Cooper house, it was already close to midnight.
The living room television was still on ESPN, still showing Rose Bowl footage while the commentators talked and waited for their partner to finish the field interviews. Andrew's debut had ended only a few minutes earlier and, because of the time difference between California and Texas, it was already very late there.
Since it was Saturday, they had made a barbecue before the game. After dinner, they moved into the living room. The coffee table was covered with forgotten cups and cans after several hours of watching football.
Everyone was there.
George occupied his usual armchair, sunk against the backrest while still watching the television. Mary was tidying a few things on the table, though every few seconds she looked back toward ESPN, still caught up in the final commentary and highlights.
Constance, Mary's mother, remained seated with a satisfied expression. Staying up this late had been worth it, they had made a lot of noise and it had been worth it.
Georgie and Mandy shared the loveseat beside Cece, their daughter, who was half asleep between them and would turn two pretty soon.
Missy, meanwhile, stayed sitting on the floor near the television, unable to take her eyes off the screen while they replayed Andrew's best plays over and over again.
And Sheldon was there too.
Just not physically.
Mary had practically forced him to join through a video call, insisting that "family traditions mattered," the same way they had done since Andrew's junior year in high school, when the whole family had started following his games every week.
A laptop rested on the same coffee table, surrounded by empty cans, pointed toward the television. On the screen, Sheldon could be seen from his room in Pasadena, still sitting with perfect posture and an analytical expression, as if he had been observing a scientific experiment instead of a football game.
Kirk Herbstreit's voice came through the television speakers while ESPN replayed Andrew's rushing touchdown once again.
[Now, looking at Pritchett's stats more calmly, I can say without too many doubts that this is the greatest true freshman debut in college football history.]
Missy, sitting on the floor with her arms around her knees, nodded several times almost immediately. "It is… it is," she murmured quietly, completely convinced.
Brent turned slightly toward Kirk from the booth.
[Earlier you sounded more cautious. What made you change your mind?] Brent asked.
[First, there's an important difference: I'm not talking about the greatest debut by any player in college football. I'm talking specifically about a true freshman,] Kirk responded.
Andrew's final stats appeared again on the television while Kirk continued, [A lot of the historic great debuts were done by older players. Redshirt freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and seniors… guys who had already spent one, two, or even three years inside college programs.]
The camera showed another replay of the deep pass to Shaq Evans.
[Pritchett is eighteen years old. This was literally his first college game and he played like he's been here for years.]
Brent nodded slowly while listening.
[Let's look at some true freshman examples,] Kirk continued. [Matt Barkley in 2009 had what was considered a historic debut. He became the first true freshman to start for a top-five team. His numbers were: one touchdown, fifteen completions on nineteen passes, 78.9% completion percentage, and 233 total yards.]
Old footage of Barkley at USC appeared on the screen.
[Another case: Chad Henne at Michigan. He finished with fourteen completions on twenty-four attempts, 58.3%, 142 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception.]
Kirk kept mentioning names. Five different examples of debuts considered excellent for true freshmen throughout college football history.
None of them really came close to what Andrew had done.
[And that's without even getting into the context,] he finally added. [Barkley was the only one of those names who debuted in Week 1. The others played their first game later in the season, with more practice rhythm, adaptation to the system, and more time inside the program.]
[Pritchett didn't have that. First game. And these are his final numbers: twenty-seven completions on thirty-seven attempts, 72.9% completion percentage, 378 passing yards and 46 rushing yards.]
Brent let out a small impressed whistle while Kirk finished.
[424 total yards. Four passing touchdowns. One rushing touchdown. Zero sacks. Zero interceptions.]
After saying it, Kirk left a small silence. As if even he needed to hear again how absurd that combination of stats sounded.
George, from his armchair with an almost empty beer can in his hand, let out a snort somewhere between disbelief and resignation. Like someone who still hadn't fully processed what he had just watched for over two hours.
[I remember a lot of people saying he was already ready for college back in his senior year of high school,] Brent commented. [Looks like they weren't wrong.]
Georgie, absentmindedly stroking his already asleep daughter's hair against him, smirked slightly. "And people also kept saying, 'let's see if he can do the same thing in college,'" he murmured amused. "Well… he literally did the same thing."
Five touchdowns just like in high school. Except now against college players, and even cleaner than games Andrew had at Mater Dei: no sacks, no interceptions.
Missy smiled proudly from the floor, as if every one of those compliments were directed personally at her. "The Jesus Christ of football has arrived in college," she declared with satisfaction, crossing her arms.
Mary immediately turned her head toward her. "Melissa Cooper," she said in a reprimanding tone, "You know I don't like that nickname or people using it in this house."
"Oh, come on, it's not that serious," Missy replied with a shrug. "That's what they call him on the internet."
From the laptop, Sheldon intervened with complete seriousness. "The nickname is statistically understandable," he commented while adjusting himself in his chair. "A figure who appears at an extremely young age, breaks historical expectations, and generates an almost religious following among sports masses naturally tends to receive messianic comparisons. Stupid? Yes, but understandable."
"Thanks, Sheldon, for the explanation," Georgie said.
"You're welcome," Sheldon responded immediately, completely failing to catch the sarcasm.
Before anyone could add anything else, Kirk spoke again from the television.
[That's why I'm saying this is the greatest debut for a true freshman. The gap between this and the other cases is simply too big.]
The broadcast returned to showing highlights from the game while Kirk continued developing the point.
[The real discussion isn't against other true freshmen anymore. Honestly, I think his comparison goes directly into the conversation for the greatest quarterback debuts in college football history, regardless of class year.]
From there, Kirk started going through other historic debuts.
Tim Tebow, Florida, 2007. Sophomore. He already had previous experience in 2006, serving as Chris Leak's backup and even being part of the national championship team. Urban Meyer was already using him in special packages before giving him the starting job. In his official debut as the main quarterback, he completed thirteen of seventeen passes, totaled 355 yards, threw three passing touchdowns, added one rushing touchdown, and had zero interceptions.
Then came Andrew Luck. Stanford, 2009. After spending an entire year as a redshirt freshman, he took over as starter and began one of the greatest eras in modern Stanford history. In his debut, he finished with eleven completions on twenty-three attempts, 201 total yards, one touchdown, and zero interceptions.
Then Geno Smith at West Virginia, 2010: 224 total yards, two touchdowns, one interception, and twenty completions on twenty-seven attempts.
Finally, another name appeared, still fresh because he had played only a few hours earlier:
Marcus Mariota from the Oregon Ducks.
The Ducks had started the season ranked number five in the country and were also debuting a new quarterback. Mariota's debut had been excellent: eighteen completions on twenty-two attempts, 81.8% completion percentage, 224 total yards, three touchdowns, zero interceptions, and zero sacks.
Mariota was a redshirt freshman.
Even so, Andrew's debut still looked more dominant. Even more absurd considering he was a true freshman and everything surrounding the game itself.
[Do you think this game earns him Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week?] Brent asked.
The Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week award was the official recognition the conference gave out every Monday after the Saturday slate of games.
Kirk didn't even hesitate.
[Absolutely. I don't think there's any debate.]
An image of Matt Barkley in his USC Trojans uniform appeared on the screen alongside his stats from the game against Hawaii played earlier that day.
-Comp/Att: 23/38 — 60.5%
-Passing yards: 372
-Rushing yards: -2
-Total touchdowns: 4
-Interceptions: 0
-Sacks: 0
[Barkley is the main competitor,] Kirk continued, [but honestly, he falls behind Pritchett this week.]
Missy made a small satisfied sound with her mouth, as if Barkley's stats weren't even enough to truly compete. And, in a way, she wasn't entirely wrong.
Andrew had over ten extra percentage points in completion rate, one more touchdown, and far more rushing production. On top of that, Hawaii and Rice were opponents of similar level, with Rice arguably being slightly more competitive.
And there was another important detail.
USC was ranked number one in the country. Barkley was a senior, a Heisman favorite, and had already spent years inside that team.
Andrew hadn't, and he was at UCLA, a program still in reconstruction.
[Looking at it that way… yeah, it becomes pretty clear,] Brent admitted. [And I'd even say Pritchett could enter the race for the Walter Camp National Offensive Player of the Week.]
That was a completely different level.
Not just the best in the conference. The best offensive player in the entire nation that week. The most prestigious and oldest weekly award in college football, voted on by Division I coaches. Every conference participated: SEC, Big Ten, and the rest.
Kirk nodded, though this time with a little more caution.
[That's where it gets tougher. He has serious competition from Geno Smith.]
Geno's stats immediately appeared on screen.
-32/36 completions
-88.9% completion percentage
-340 total yards
-4 touchdowns
-0 interceptions
An absurd level of efficiency and, even though West Virginia Mountaineers's offensive system relied heavily on quick passes and short decisions, continuing to complete nearly ninety percent of passes at that level was still extremely difficult.
Even so, Andrew's narrative still felt bigger.
A debut that not only placed him in the conversation for Offensive Player of the Week, but that would directly spark debates about whether it had been the greatest debut ever seen in college football.
[Brent, Kirk, can you hear me?] a female voice suddenly came through the broadcast.
[Yes, Heather, we hear you loud and clear,] Brent responded.
[I'm here with Pritchett-Tucker,] Heather announced.
The camera immediately switched to the field at the Rose Bowl.
Heather Cox stood on the grass holding the black microphone with the ESPN logo on it. Her blonde hair fell neatly over her shoulders and she carried that elegant, professional presence typical of the network's major sideline reporters. Even surrounded by the postgame chaos, she looked completely comfortable handling the situation.
Standing beside her was Andrew, without his helmet. His dark hair slightly damp and messy from sweat, part of his jersey stuck to his body after so much time playing.
Behind them, the Rose Bowl was still alive. Bruins players still celebrating the victory, photographers moving quickly, staff members crossing the field, and thousands of people still remaining in the stands instead of leaving.
Missy bit her lower lip while staring at the television. "He's really hot."
"Young lady!" Mary scolded her the moment she heard it.
Missy rolled her eyes, though she didn't say anything else because the interview had already started.
[Hi, Andrew. Congratulations on the win and on the debut. How are you feeling?] Heather asked with a professional smile, holding the microphone toward him.
[Thank you,] Andrew responded, still catching his breath a little. [Happy with the result. Starting the season with a win was important and the team played really well.]
Heather nodded before speaking again, [Did you imagine something like this? A packed Rose Bowl, national prime time… everything surrounding this debut.]
Andrew let out a small smile at that, [I knew there was going to be a lot of hype,] he admitted. [In high school we already played huge games, nationally televised, with a lot of pressure, so I could imagine some of this.]
He briefly lifted his gaze toward the still packed stands behind them.
[But even then… this was incredible. Playing here, at the Rose Bowl, as UCLA's quarterback, with the stadium full supporting us, that's definitely something special.]
Heather smiled slightly before asking the next question, [Your numbers even exceeded the highest expectations. People are already talking about you winning Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week over Matt Barkley, even competing for the national weekly award. What do you think about that?]
Andrew listened to the question without changing his expression much, [I don't know… I don't think too much about that. If those awards come, great. But right now the most important thing is preparing for the next game against Nebraska Cornhuskers.]
The answer came out naturally.
Heather watched him for a second, as if noticing how quickly he brushed past everything he had just accomplished.
It wasn't wrong to already be thinking about the next opponent. The following week UCLA would face the Nebraska Cornhuskers, ranked eighteenth in the AP Poll. This would no longer be a team like Rice. Nebraska was a historic college football powerhouse, with five national championships and decades as one of the most respected programs in the country.
Georgie let out a small laugh while shaking his head. "Five touchdowns in your debut and the guy's already thinking about Nebraska."
Mary nodded. "That boy always had his head on straight."
There was something reassuring about seeing someone with that much talent without getting completely lost inside his own ego.
Missy made an exaggerated face. "I would've talked about myself for at least an entire week."
"We know," Mandy commented from the couch.
Missy turned her head and stuck her tongue out at her.
After that, the postgame interview ended without going on much longer. There were a few more interviews with Jim Mora and other players like Amari, the wide receiver who caught two touchdown passes.
Eventually, the broadcast came to an end.
Missy stood up from the floor stretching. "I told you you couldn't miss it," she said while looking at her grandmother.
Constance nodded calmly, keeping her usual composed expression, "It was good."
Missy's eyes widened in outrage. "Good?" she repeated, offended. "Meemaw, we just watched the most dominant debut in college football history!"
Constance sighed. "And I couldn't bet a single dollar on UCLA winning."
The ability to legally bet money on college football games was still extremely limited. Nevada was the only state where you could legally walk into a casino and place real money on an NCAA game.
Georgie burst out laughing from the armchair.
Mary, ignoring the discussion, picked up the laptop from the coffee table, adjusted it better, and pointed it toward herself before sitting down on the couch.
"Well, enough football for today," she said with a small maternal smile. "How's studying going, Shelly?"
On the screen, Sheldon slightly adjusted his posture after hearing the question.
"As always, productive," he replied in his usual tone, not adding anything else.
Mary was already used to that.
"And what about the new students coming in this year?" she asked, trying to sound casual. "Maybe you can make a friend."
It was a real concern for her.
Sheldon had already finished his doctorate at sixteen years old. And instead of slowing down, staying still, or simply living like any other kid his age, he had immediately moved on to a second thesis at California Institute of Technology.
According to his own calculations, which, being Sheldon, were probably accurate, he would finish around the age of twenty.
Basically, ever since he was eleven years old, he had spent his entire preteen and teenage years jumping from one academic achievement to another without rest.
As expected, his number of friends remained zero. Partly because of his personality.
Actually, mainly because of his personality.
But also because he had spent years surrounded by much older students. People in their mid-twenties, thirties, or older, doing doctorates and advanced research work.
Now Sheldon still lived inside Caltech, in a private residence on campus granted because of his academic record and prodigy status.
Mary knew a new generation of students would soon arrive. Mostly eighteen-year-olds. Geniuses too, because getting into Caltech was far from easy.
And maybe one of them could connect with him.
Sheldon barely frowned upon hearing the suggestion. "Why would I care about new students who are just starting their undergraduate degrees?" he asked with naturally condescending sincerity. "Academically speaking, I'm light-years ahead of them."
"There's the reason he has no friends," Georgie said.
Mary looked at him for a moment with a slight frown before turning back toward the screen. "Come on, there has to be some genius, right?" she insisted.
Sheldon remained silent for a few seconds, as if evaluating whether the information deserved to be shared or not.
Then he remembered a conversation he had overheard days earlier between two professors in the Caltech cafeteria. And in a place as small as that, interesting incoming students quickly became a topic of discussion.
"There's a boy with an IQ of 173," he finally answered.
"Oh…" Mary said, genuinely surprised.
Georgie leaned closer toward the laptop, partially entering the camera frame. "Is that a lot?"
Sheldon looked at him through the screen with an expression that mixed exhaustion and intellectual disappointment.
"Georgie, an IQ of 173 places someone above 99.99% of the world population," Sheldon explained slowly, as if speaking to someone particularly limited. "That's the range normally associated with figures like Albert Einstein or Stephen Hawking, both estimated above 160, although neither ever officially took a verifiable modern IQ test."
Georgie blinked a couple of times. "Okay… so yeah, that is a lot."
"Although still inferior to mine," Sheldon added with complete naturalness and obvious superiority. "My IQ is 187."
George let out a dry laugh from the armchair. "Thank God you remind us every five minutes."
"And what's the boy's name?" Mary asked.
Sheldon hesitated for just an instant. "Leonard Hofstadter."
Mary smiled a little upon hearing that, at the very least, Sheldon already knew someone's name before even meeting him.
But before she could say anything else, Georgie leaned back toward the laptop again, a teasing smile slowly forming across his face.
"Wait… didn't you just say you didn't care about the new students? Then how do you know his name?"
Sheldon immediately made a small grimace, clearly uncomfortable with the direction the conversation was taking.
He had overheard two professors talking in the cafeteria about an incoming freshman with perfect grades and an IQ of 173. And, well… his scientific curiosity had been activated.
So he checked the list of incoming students. Strictly for academic reasons, of course.
"It was merely information verification," Sheldon responded quickly, trying to sound indifferent. "I heard statistically improbable claims and decided to verify them."
Georgie's smile widened even more. "Uh-huh… so you were interested."
From there, the conversation devolved into a classic sibling argument from the old days. Even Missy joined in.
Georgie took every opportunity to annoy him, Missy only added more fuel to the fire, and Sheldon defended his position with growing irritation every time they tried suggesting he felt any kind of social interest in this so-called Leonard Hofstadter.
Mary watched the entire scene without intervening, comfortably leaning back on the couch. Deep down, she couldn't help feeling happy.
The argument made her nostalgic.
But there was also something else that reassured her. Because even if Sheldon would never admit it directly, this already counted as a tremendous amount of interest coming from him.
And so, little by little, the night at the Cooper house in Texas slowly came to an end.
But on the other side of the country, in LA, the night was only just beginning.
After having dinner with his family and celebrating the victory, Andrew finished getting ready to head out. He was going to a party.
And not just any party.
It was being hosted by one of UCLA's biggest fraternities, one of those houses known for throwing massive events where half the campus eventually showed up… especially after a game and debut of this magnitude.
Even Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez were going to be there. Andrew had spoken with them for a few minutes after the game, and Justin had practically invited himself with complete naturalness.
There was also another detail that made everything feel even bigger.
Andrew had spent months turning down fraternity invitations.
A lot of them.
And instead of annoying people, it had actually earned him even more respect around UCLA. The image built around him was that of someone completely focused on football, training, and performance.
Almost obsessive.
That's why the fact that he was finally agreeing to show up at a party after a debut like this made half the campus feel like that night was going to be special.
One of those college nights that everyone later claims they were there for.
-------------------------------------------------
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