Football game: In the town of South Leonardo, Georgia, two local teams are playing for the state championship: the Larson Lions and the South Leonardo Gamecocks. The Gamecocks lead 26-20 and prepare to kick off to Larson with 4:13 left in the game. Team announcer Matthew Wooderson calls the game for radio. The cheerleaders chant for the Lions.
The Lions are led by interim coach Ali Berke and her assistant Shawn Pickford. The Gamecocks are led by controversial coach Adam Newhouse. The Lions have all their timeouts left. The Gamecocks kick off and Jason Floyd receives the ball. He fumbles, but recovers at the two yard line. Quarterback Wiley Kramer tells Floyd to shake it off. He's confident they will win.
Earlier, Larson Principal Christine Faulkner walks into a meeting of the football team. No coaches are present. Faulkner calls out a list of names, most of the star players on the team except for Wiley. She has them leave the room. Faulkner tells the team that those players have been dismissed from the team and school and the entire coaching staff has been fired.
In an U.S. Army tent on the island of St. Poco, Randall Kramer (Wiley's brother) reads a letter from his wife Sasha. She includes a picture that has wearing lingerie. Justin Monsour, also from South Leonardo, plays cards with Chris Davis and Alex Breck. Sgt. Franklin reads. Randall tries to sleep, but something is on his mind, keeping him awake.
Randall's wife, Sasha Dawson goes to work at Mothers and Truckers restaurant, which is run by Mickey Kramer, Wiley and Randall's sister. Sasha grabs an apron and flirts harmlessly with the cook, Chick Sanchez. Working at the register is Julie Morris.
The Nerd Squad arrives with Sammy Chen arriving first, trying (and failing) to flirt with Julie. The other Nerd Squad members are Wiley, Randall, Jason, Glenn Finnegan, Dwayne Sapolu and Anthony Olson. The nerds are all very flirty, particularly with Mickey. Wiley gets the special, which Mickey made herself. Everyone else gets the same thing they always get. Mickey says that everyone in town comes in and orders the same thing every day, except Wiley, who always eats the special. Finnegan is inspired (to a point) and adds pickles to his burger. Mickey flips him a bird.
Football: The team is down, thinking they're going to lose. Wiley gets them pumped up. He calls the play, they get set and center Joey Kerr snaps the ball. Wiley hits Floyd on a flare pass for 5 yards. He is tackled by Ben O'Bannion, Rory Slater and Parker Marks who play for the Gamecocks. 3:59 left in the game.
Earlier, Wiley walks along Main Street with a reporter, Sharon Alligood who is in town to do a story on him and his brother. To introduce himself, Wiley shows her the town, since you can't understand him without understanding the town. Wiley takes her to several shops that sell amazing food. He tells her that a factory closed down and that killed a lot of businesses. Those that are left are part of Snack Central and they taste sushi, fudge and pretzels. Wiley says his philosophy is that you can do anything you want, as long as you aren't hurting anybody else.
They arrive at Larson High School, which was designed by a famous modern architect. It's a public magnet school that attracts a lot of rich parents and a lot of money. The school graduates nearly every student and it has a big eSports program which recruits outside of the district heavily. The football program has only been around for about 20 years.
At the base of Zaki Hill on the island of St. Poco, three U.S. Army tents are set up in a tropical rainforest. Staff Sgt. Donald Franks brings a reporter, Jeremy Hirschfelder, into the tent and introduces him. The reporter is assigned a cot. When trying to find his cot, he meets Justin and Randall. He tells them he was assigned to the story because he's from the nearby town of North Leonardo.
Wooderson recaps the game so far. South Leonardo is seeking their 8th 3A state title. Larson only one their first playoff game in history when Wiley was a freshman. The current Larson team is smaller and more out-of-shape than the South Leonardo team. The three key defensive players for the Gamecocks are Parker Marks, Ben O'Bannion and Rory Slater. On offense for Larson, Wiley is the star and Joey Kerr is all-district at tackle, even though he's playing guard now.
Football: Wiley tosses the ball to RB Ryan Roper. Guard Temple Plummer misses a block; he's been struggling all day. Roper is stopped after a gain of three. There is 3:48 left.
Alligood interviews Berke, Pickford and Faulkner. She doesn't go into the details of the sexual assault and instead is focused on the effects on the people left behind. Faulkner says she only picked two coaches to finish out the one game left in the season. She says she only hires the best people and they are qualified to coach one football game. Alligood asks about Coach Bruno, but Faulkner says he was hired before her term and that she fired Bruno and all his people after the assault. They actively sought to hire a woman to coach the team and wanted coaches with previous experience at the school. Alligood questions Berke and Pickford about their qualifications. Berke's are quite high, while Pickford's less so.
In St. Poco, the squad takes Hirschfelder on a safe tour of the jungle near Zaki Hill, far from any combat zone. He gets to know the troops in the squad. Sgt. Roosevelt is a Black man very distantly related to the famous Roosevelts. Sgt. Franklin is not related to any of his famous name-bearers. Jake Jenner went to Yale. He smoked weed, flunked out and got drafted. John Gordon is a distant relative of former MLB pitcher Tom Gordon. Billy Buttermaker pretends to be a farmboy, but he's actually from Kansas and not a redneck.
At the base camp, Franks leads the squad and Hirschfelder in a briefing. Info is limited while Hirschfelder is present and he's not allowed to publicly write about anything he sees until after the operation is over. First, they need to complete final recon before moving forward and they're almost done. Hirschfelder is asked to leave and Franks finishes the briefing. The squad has been ordered by the president to take the Royal Palace at the top of Zaki Hill. Franks says that the palace is not empty, though, there are enemy troops stationed there.
At Mothers and Truckers Restaurant, Alligood interviews the staff (Mickey, Sasha, Julie, Chick and Beverly Deutch). Wiley is also present. Wiley reveals that his mother (Zoey) died from COVID. He says that his father (Richard) is NOT his father and is currently in federal prison. He and Randall are twins, but not identical. Mickey says they couldn't be more different. Randall played football, though, and was a good linebacker and savage tackler. Like Richard was. Wiley says that Randall isn't like Richard, but Mickey reminds him about what happened to Sammy. Wiley gets defensive and calls Richard a tyrant. Mickey shuts the conversation down.
Football: Wiley hands off to Roper. O'Bannion grabs him for no gain. Plummer complains that he needs help, he's too small. Wiley tells him to stick with it, it's only a few more minutes. 3:34 is left.
Wooderson recaps the game. South Leonardo Gamecocks (SLG): QB Greg Bullock hits TE Jeffrey Leak for a TD (7-0). SLG: Ridge Whitewood runs for a TD (13-0). Larson: CB returns Bullock pass for TD (13-6). SLG: Bullock hits WR Brandon Engelberg for a TD (20-6). Larson: Floyd scores a TD on a reverse (20-12). Larson: Floyd returns punt for TD (20-20). SLG: Bullock hits Leak for another TD (26-20).
In St. Poco, Hirschfelder plays cards with the squad. It's too loud for Randall who goes outside and calls Sasha. It's super late back in South Leonardo. He says he's lonely. She says he should call more. Says Justin calls her more than Randall does. She tells him to stop making Justin lie for him. He pretends not to know what she's talking about, but she knows better. He claimed he was drafted, but he chose to go. She asks why he'd want to leave her. He can't talk about it. She tells him that life is short and he'd better grab it while he can. He asks, what if he can't.
At the South Leonardo City Hall, a group of parents and community members are there for a town hall meeting featuring Faulkner, Berke, Pickford, Mayor Verónica Iglesias and school board Chair Marissa Dunn. The mayor only has a little bit of time, so she answers questions first. Alligood follows up on previous requests for info sent to the Mayor's office, but Iglesias brushes her off. Iglesias signals her aide that it's time for a rescue. The aide fakes an emergency and gets Iglesias out of the commitment. As she's leaving, Iglesias pulls Faulkner outside. Iglesias cusses Faulkner out for not better screening the questions. Inside, Igelsias' mic is still live and everyone hears what she says. The aide rushes to tell Iglesias that the mic is still hot. She gets angry and leaves.
Back inside, Faulkner opens up the questions to the audience. A series of random citizens really turn the Q+A into a fiasco and they ask a bunch of dumb and/or pointed right wing questions. Nobody gains anything from the town hall, it's a waste of time. One parent is rude enough to get ejected. The others call for someone to be fired, but they aren't really sure who or why.
Football: On 4th down, Wiley is in the shotgun. Roper and Floyd switch places. Houston shifts to RB spot. The defense is temporarily confused, but adjusts. Kerr snaps the ball. Wiley fakes a throw to Floyd and instead does the statue of liberty play with WR Mark Houston. Plummer gets a huge block on O'Bannion and Houston gets two yard for the first down. Wiley is even more confident now. 3:13 left.
At Larson High School, Wiley and Floyd recruit Sapolu, Olson and Finnegan to play football. Olson doesn't want to because they had nothing to do with the assault. But Wiley counters that he and the rest of the remaining team didn't either and they shouldn't be punished. He reminds them that they played when they were younger and loved it. He talks them into it and they get pretty excited about the Nerd Squad getting a state championship rings and varsity jackets. Sammy arrives and notes that he wasn't invited to this meeting. He hates football, though, and walks back out of the room when the others tell him they're joining the football team.
In St. Poco, Sgt. Franklin leads the squad on patrol. He steps on a mine and is immediately killed. Randall is hit, but it's not that bad. Gordon is hit a bit worse and has to be taken back to camp so he doesn't bleed out.
From outside Tanner Brumley's house, we watch the day of the assault. Tanner gets the newspaper. Tanner and a frat boy go get kegs for the party. Two frat boys put up a sign. Renee Monsour arrives early. The football players arrive. Party-goers come and go throughout the night. Frat boys go get more kegs. Police arrive to respond to a noise complaint. Most of the women leave the party. Renee may be the only one left. A lot of time goes by. Justin pulls up outside, responding to a text from Renee to pick him up. Randall leaves the house. Renee comes running out and it's clear she has been assaulted. She tells Justin to take her to the police station. He does. Tanner and the football players leave the house, satisfied with themselves.
Football: Wiley snaps the ball and hands off to Roper. But it's a reverse and Houston has the ball, headed back the other direction. Tackle Tyler McReynolds misses a block, but Houston gets a three yard gain. McReynolds complains about being moved to tackle. Wiley chides him for his lack of effort. There is 2:59 left.
Alligood reports from South Leonardo High School. She discusses coach Adam Newhouse who was fired from his job at South Leonardo State University for a whole host of violations. He was hired by the high school and there are rumors that he has offered bounties for his players hurting others. But his teams keep winning and the school's parents love him. A lawsuit has been filed against him.
Randall fakes not being able to get a signal so he can avoid calling home. Hirschfelder comes outside for a smoke, and he says he has no phone. Justin overhears them and he checks his phone. He has a very good signal.
Football: Wooderson explains that Larson fired all of it's coaching staff and expelled eight starters. Another player quit to join the Army. The players do introductions in the studio, like in most televised games, except this is the players who were expelled admitting that they made a choice to do something wrong. Cut back and forth between these introductions and a live play where the difference between the old player and the smaller replacement player is shown. The players are: J.J. Douglas, Juston Niles, Tanner Brumley, Austin Nesbit, Jonathan Gordon, Autrey Brittain, Cole O'Donnell and Randall Kramer. Justin Monsour is guilty that he didn't protect his sister, the victim. Coach Nicky Bruno denies responsibility. In the play that SHOULD have happened, the bigger stronger players perform better than the real players. The play call changes and the real team gets an 11-yard gain, but it could've been much more. Plummer apologizes for missing a block, but McReynolds, who also missed, shrugs it off. There is 2:37 left.
Renee sits in her apartment drinking wine. She's been crying. She starts watching YouTube videos and the advice is all the same thing she's already heard. She does pay particular attention to one that suggests a new location and she searches for jobs in Los Angeles. The scene prepares to end, but Renee breaks the fourth wall to talk directly to the audience: she chastises the male filmmakers for not letting her speak with her own voice. Then she declares, quite eloquently, that the crime done against her doesn't define her and isn't her origin story, it's a bad thing that happened to her and she controls her own life.
In St. Poco, Franks tells the squad they are taking the palace that night and they aren't getting any reinforcements. Franks won't confirm it with Hirschfelder present, but they have intel that a noted terrorist, who attacked the U.S., was present in the royal palace.
Earlier, Wiley and Beverly are on a date at Mothers and Truckers. Beverly talks about her work in SGA and Wiley makes fun of it. She insults football in return. She asks why he plays a sport that gave his brother CTE. He counters by asking why she dates a football player then. He says it's mostly safe. She's not convinced.
Football: Plummer asks McReynolds to switch sides, but McReynolds laughs at him. Wiley calls a time out and yanks McReynolds off the field. He tells Berke that McReynolds is going to cost them the game. Berke trusts Wiley's judgment and McReynolds is benched. He doesn't care. Wiley calls for the Nerd Squad to come into the game. Wholesale substitutions are made and Olson, Jason Spivey, Finnegan and Sapolu come into the game. Wiley hands off to Olsen, who does a flea flicker. Finnegan catches it for a first down near midfield. There is 2:13 left.
On Zaki Hill, the squad moves through the rainforest, staying away from the one road that goes up the mountain. A thick fog bank moves across the island and up the mountain with them. Buttermaker takes point and they move most of the way up the mountain with no incident. Suddenly, a sniper starts firing at them. They take cover behind various trees, but it isn't good cover. Buttermaker is hit and in a lot of pain. Randall tries to look and gets shot in his right hand. He wraps it and calls out for Sgt. Roosevelt. Breck tells him that Roosevelt is dead. The bullets continue to fly.
Earlier, Berke interviews Pickford for the assistant coach position. He explains he's played a lot of RPGs, but she asks why he didn't lead with the fact he's a math teacher. She asks him to some homework. A montage shows him watching game film, reading every book he can get his hands on and watching football movies. Notably, he reads the book Scorecasting and starts taking notes.
Football: The Nerd Squad returns to the bench, but Sapolu stays in for McReynolds. Guard Esteban Burnett blocks two defenders. Wiley hits Houston 5 yards downfield. Marks closes on him, but the hook-and-ladder play is on and Houston tosses the ball to Floyd who ends up with a 12-yard gain and another first down. There are two minutes left in the game.
On Zaki Hill, the fog is so thick the shooting has stopped. Franks contacts his superiors. The others engage in a thorough conversation about what food they would eat if they could eat right now. Franks is serious about salad. Gordon complains that Franks' description of salad makes his head hurt. Franks looks out from behind his cover and is shot and killed.
Sasha arrives at Mothers and Truckers and Julie jumps in the car before she can get out. She tells Sasha that she found out that Randall was part of the assault. Sasha doesn't believe it at first, then she bursts into tears.
Football: Wiley looks to pass, but gets a lot of pressure. He ends up throwing the ball out of bounds. 1:53 remains in the game.
Earlier, Berke and Pickford watch practice. Kicker Quint Linklater arrives in an air cast and says he can play, but Berke says it's not worth it, he could get hurt worse. She benches him and they need a new kicker. Quint suggests his sister Milla, who is a goalie for the soccer team. Milla gets a tryout. She has a hell of a leg, but her accuracy is bad. She's great on kickoffs. Berke tells her to practice onside kicks and Milla seems to have an affinity for it. Once the game has started, Milla comes in early and tries an extra point. Marks yells sexist things at her and she misses the kick. The coaches tell her to shake it off and be ready for onside kicks. Later in the game, Wiley sees Marks standing on the sideline. He wastes a play to throw the ball and hit Marks with an "errant" pass. Wiley salutes Milla and she smiles in appreciation.
Randall tells the squad that they are taking Zaki Hill tonight. Supposedly there are only minimal forces resisting them.
Earlier, on the practice field, the Nerd Squad plays football with some other teens. Wiley and Randall lead the different teams and they go back and forth doing all kinds of trick plays. Afterwards, it turns out Pickford was watching them the whole time.
Football: Wiley snaps the ball. O'Bannion gets away with an illegal hit on Sapolu and Marks sacks Wiley for a loss of 8. Wiley rushes to argue with the Referee to complain. The Ref says he doesn't argue with players. Wiley appeals to Berke and she complains. The Ref brushes her off because she's a woman. But Berke was college roommates with the Mayor and after the game, she's going to call and get that Ref fired. There is 1:42 left.
The squad arrives at the top of Zaki Hill and finds no resistance. The Royal Palace appears empty. The squad splits up and secures the Palace. The meet inside, but the building is completely abandoned. Randall tells them to set up a perimeter and wait while he contacts Lt. Col. McKinney. The squad watch President Wright discuss them on TV. Randall comes in and tells them to settle in, they'll be in the palace a while. They ask if they can raid the palace and Randall gives them the go ahead. They go find food, alcohol, gold, jewelry, cash. Jenner finds a Nazi gun (for his collection?). They get super drunk and Breck reveals that he found a tattoo parlor and that he's a tattoo artist. He shows his own tattoos and offers to give them one. They all agree and they get matching tattoos of a mountain and the word "Zaki." Jenner might be a white supremacist. Gordon thinks he jinxed Franks and got him killed, but Randall rejects that and says that everything in life sucks and everybody is horrible. He says THEY are the bad people.
At Mothers and Truckers, Sasha finds the normally composed Mickey crying. Mickey tries to brush it off, but Sasha says they're family and pushes. Mickey doesn't want to open up, but Sasha is relentless. Mickey concentrates and pushes through. She says that she raised the boys by herself and sacrificed a lot to do it. She doesn't want much, but she wants gratitude. And freedom. She has offers from culinary schools and wants to go. Sasha asks to run Mothers and Truckers and Mickey agrees. Mickey asks how Sasha is dealing with the news about her husband. She needs to dive into the restaurant to overcome her sadness. She tells Mickey to talk to Wiley before he's gone.
Football: Kerr snaps the ball to Wiley, who covertly slips it through Floyd's legs. Floyd, who is hidden behind the huge Sapolu and Burnett, waits. Wiley rolls away from Floyd and the defense follows, buying the fake. Floyd takes off and Plummer gets a huge block. Floyd gets 20 yards and another first down. There is 1:27 left.
President Wright talks on the phone with Randall. Junior listens and laughs in the background. The president tells Randall the soldiers have to keep the palace for "strategic reasons." Randall tells the rest of the squad this, but Davis finds it suspicious.
Earlier, Wiley is leaving the field house when a booster, Arthur Ravenscraft, confronts him. Ravenscraft wants to make sure that Wiley isn't going to lose control like Randall. Ravenscraft implies a lot of people would be unhappy if he doesn't win the game. Ravenscraft demands to know where Wiley is going to college and insults Berke, with the implication that women can't coach.
Wiley flashes back to a time when he was watching Sports Central with his father. Richard complains about a Black woman coach during a basketball game. Richard is clearly racist. He complains that Wiley is wasting his time playing basketball. Richard invites Wiley to join in him in Washington, D.C., for the January 6 insurrection. Wiley completely rejects his father. Richard throws a crumpled beer can and hits Wiley in the head. It doesn't hurt, but Wiley confronts him physically. Richard knows he couldn’t win a fight, though, so he doesn't bite. Wiley threatens him and Richard backs down. Wiley leaves.
The flashback ends and Wiley rips away from Ravenscraft. He steps to the older man and Ravenscraft says Wiley's just like Randall. Wiley says Randall picked on weaker people and Wiley would never do that. Ravenscraft says there won't be a fight. Today.
Football: Wiley gets the ball in the shotgun. He throws to tight end Wyatt Willoughby downfield, but Slater breaks up the pass. There is 1:19 left.
In St. Poco, Davis takes Randall and Justin outside to tell them that the president's claim that the palace is strategic makes no sense. They come to the conclusion that the president, who is into real estate, wants that land. St. Poco rebels enter the building and fire on the squad. They take cover and Randall, Davis and Justin rush the room and easily take out the rebels. Jenner unmasks the dead men and discovers they're white. He makes a racist comment and Gordon steps to him. Randall breaks it up.
At halftime, a trainer tells Wiley that a police officer needs him outside. Wiley tells Pickford, who gives him 5 minutes. Wiley goes outside and there's no police officer. Instead there are a group of drunken men led by the booster's son Roger Ravenscraft. They assault him and Roger stomps on what he thinks is Wiley's throwing hand. Pickford comes looking for Wiley and scares Roger and his goons away. Inside, the doctor says Wiley has a broken finger and a fractured one, but he tapes them up and clears him to play.
Football: Wiley gets the ball in the shotgun. Sapolu is starting to neutralize O'Bannion on every down. Marks blitzes, but Wiley hits Houston for a 14-yeard gain. Marks follows through and roughly hits Wiley, saying it's for his earlier "bad pass." Wiley talks trash, noting it was still a first down and predicting a touchdown. Marks is shocked. There is 1:10 left.
The full Nerd Squad plays Warhammer. Randall can't stop talking about football, which gets Sammy angry. He hates football and makes fun of Randall for liking it. Randall attacks him, but is held back by Wiley and Sapolu. Wiley said friends don't fight, but Randall and Sammy agree they aren't friends.
Randall stands on the balcony of the Royal Palace talking to the president. The president tells him they can't lose since they have the high ground. The president doesn't remember the name of the rebels and asks whoever is listening in on the conversation to correct him. They do. Randall tries to confirm that the local forces don't have air capabilities, but the president hangs up.
Football: Wiley rolls out and tries to hit Floyd on a short pass, but the throw is a bit off and Slater breaks up the play. There are 57 seconds left.
President Wright speaks at a press conference. When press about the situation in St. Poco, he insults the reporter. He claims that taking the mountain was easy and keeping it will be easy. He essentially dares anyone to try and take it. Watching TV in St. Poco, Randall knows this means that they aren't going anywhere, that they have to keep the palace against all comers.
Earlier, the Nerd Squad are playing Warhammer again. Sammy calls him a speed bump for slowing down the game. Randall goes outside for a smoke break. He leaves the door cracked and can hear Sammy call him an asshole. Randall rushes in side and punches Sammy before the others pull him away. Later, Randall listens in on his parents fighting. Sammy had a broken cheek bone. Randall is being sent to the military.
Football: Wiley sees Sammy Chen in the stands and waves. Kerr snaps the ball and a blitzing Marks chases Wiley out of the pocket. Sapolu gets a good block on him and Wiley outruns O'Bannion for a 5-yard gain. There are 42 seconds left.
At Signa Beach, Larson students are participating in the Senior Night Bonfire Beach Party. Apparently, so are the South Leonardo High School seniors. The parties mix. Later, Beverly is ready to go home and it looks to Wiley like she might have something going on with Parker Marks. He follows them to find out and has an awkward, almost-sexual encounter with Marks. Marks gets angry and tells Wiley to stay away. Later, on game day, Wiley tries to shake hands with Marks, but Marks swats it away and insults him.
Justin reads an article that reveals that Randall was part of the assault against his sister. He grabs Randall and pulls him towards the balcony. The other soldiers wake up, but Justin scares them off. He drags Randall outside.
Football: Wiley switches up the formation and the crowd gets loud. Kerr snaps and Wiley hands off to Roper and Floyd gets the ball on another reverse. Floyd turns and passes the ball back across the field, landing in a wide-open Wiley's hands for a touchdown. The game is tied.
Justin drags Randall outside. Justin kicks him. The rest of the squad watches from inside, but doesn't intervene. Randall doesn't protect himself and Justin punches him again and again. The fact that Randall doesn't resist saps Justin of his anger. Randall admits his guilt. Justin yells at him, making the assault about how it made Justin feel. Justin joined the Army because of the assault, he lied about being drafted.
And bombs fall, ripping Randall apart. The entire palace is leveled. Everyone inside dies.
Football: Milla makes the extra point attempt easily and Larson leads 27-26.
President Wright gets a call that there were airstrikes on the St. Poco Royal Palace. He wants to order a retaliatory strike and lets his son Junior give the order. Junior does, he screws it up and the president doesn't correct him. American jets fly over the palace and bomb it again, even though it has already been bombed.
Football: Pickford tells Milla to go for the onside kick. She tricks the defenders and is about to easily get the onside kick. Slater is going to hit her, whether she gets the ball or not. Sapolu steps up and hits Slater so hard the safety flips over. Milla covers the ball. There are 11 seconds left.
The night before the game, Wiley and Mickey sit and have a long-needed conversation to clear the air. Mickey tells him that Randall was part of the sexual assault. He goes into denial and then questions her source. She was told by the police as Randall's legal guardian. She kept it from Wiley because he had too much to deal with after what happened to his parents. Wiley says Randall wouldn't do anything like that, but she reminds him about Sammy. Mickey reminds him that Wiley was a savage football player. Randall wasn't drafted, he was forced to enlist. And now he's dead. It's not clear if he was killed by enemy or friendly fire.
Wiley asks Mickey to finally confide in him. She says she wanted to play football but the desire was beaten out of her. She wanted to enlist in the military, but she had to run the restaurant. Richard was abusive to her frequently. Wiley admits he turned in Richard for January 6. Richard's lies about COVID led to Zoey's death. Mickey tells him she is leaving and attending the Culinary Institute in Texas and leaving the restaurant to Sasha to run. Wiley says he's going to win the game, but he's going to win it for himself and for Mickey, not for anyone else. Wiley says she shouldn't have lied to him because she can take anything. She says she knows he can and that's why she didn't tell him. He asks if they can just leave. She says they can, but he has to win the game first, to secure whatever future he wants for himself. She tells him she's leaving after the game. Mickey and Sasha go outside to tell Julie about Justin. They hug and cry it out.
Football: In the final huddle, Wiley shakes the hand of every player and thanks them. Kerr snaps the ball, Wiley kneels down, the game is over.
Earlier, Beverly confronts Wiley about his encounter with Marks. Wiley reveals he's bisexual. Beverly freaks out about it because of her religion. Wiley doesn't care and they are broken up. She tries to get him to tell her what college he's going to and he walks away.
Police officers arrest Roger Ravenscraft and several of his thugs.
President Wright confirms that there are no survivors from St. Poco and he vows revenge. When a reporter asks probing questions, the president leaves.
Wiley holds a press conference to announce his college choice. Instead of saying anything, he has Mickey read his acceptance letter. She plugs the restaurant before reading the letter. Wiley is going to a school where he has a chance to win the starting job as a freshman. He'll be playing point guard for the American Eagles in basketball. American doesn't even have a football team.
Berke calls the mayor to get the sexist referee fired.
In Los Angeles, Renee goes into a karaoke bar and performs "Bad Romance," by Lady Gaga. She kills. Afterwards, she goes to the bar for a drink. A producer, Ellen Baker McKinnon, saw her perform and buys her a drink. McKinnon says she runs a TV show that turns out to be Renee's favorite show. McKinnon says they should have dinner.
After the game, players and fans sing the mighty mighty Lions theme song on the football field.