The Big Time

Football Genius #4

by Tim Green

Things couldn't be going better for Troy White. The Atlanta Falcons' football genius is at the top of his game, helping the team get to the playoffs. Agents and lawyers are knocking on his door with big-money offers for the upcoming season. And his own football team has just won the Georgia State Championship! Troy's celebrating with his friends at linebacker Seth Halloway's mansion when another lawyer comes knocking—and he says, "I think I'm your father." In that instant, Troy's life is changed. Powerfully charged from start to finish, this is an amazing portrayal of Troy's struggle to make his lifetime dreams of being with his father come true. Filled with page-turning excitement as a high-stakes deal increases the clash of family tension, The Big Time is an unforgettable experience.

Genres: Sports, Football, Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Young Adult, Juvenile, Family

288 pages, Hardcover

First published August 9, 2010

About the author

Tim Green, for many years a star defensive end with the Atlanta Falcons, is a man of many talents. He's the author of such gripping books for adults as the New York Times bestselling The Dark Side of the Game and a dozen suspense novels, including Exact Revenge and Kingdom Come. Tim graduated covaledictorian from Syracuse University and was a first-round NFL draft pick. He later earned his law degree with honors. Tim has worked as an NFL analyst for FOX Sports and as an NFL commentator for National Public Radio, among other broadcast experience. He lives with his wife, Illyssa, and their five children in upstate New York. Football Genius is his first novel for young readers. For more updates, visit www.facebook.com/authortimgreen

Reviews

[Xavier.F · Rating 4 out of 5]

there are dangerous parts but you stick threw it

[Karson · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this book Troy and his two other best friends play football together. Troy has this special ability to see patterns of a play while he is on and off the field, he is the starting quarterback so it comes in handy. He and his middle school football team win the junior league championship, that gets Troy's name out there, he becomes popular because of winning the game and his ability to see patterns of the plays. Later on the Falcons get interested in Troy and ask if he wants to work with them and he will get paid. Once his name really gets out there his Dad shows up, and Troy has never met him, his Mom is really mad when he shows up. Troy's Dad tries to become his agent and lawyer. But his Dad gets him involved in a lot and it stresses Troy out. Troy's Mom gets the FBI involved and she finds out that all the money that Troy's Dad got is illegal money. Then he gets really upset and tries to help his Dad out so he does but he wants to go back to his normal life. So he does, he goes to this All-Star game he got invited to and everyone gets $10,000 for a college scholarship, and a bunch of college scouts are there. It's Georgia kids versus Florida kids. Troy's team wins, and he gets college scouts coming to him. And since he is back to his normal life he is happy again.

[Cora Keehner]

I really liked how it tied with the other books.

[Noah Overturf · Rating 4 out of 5]

Troy got an oppertunity to go on the feild and play with NFL star and he did really good then he got injured and then when he had his final game and got injured.

[Christopher]

I liked this book. Although the chapters in this book is pretty short. I can compare Troy to my brother. Overall, this book was pretty good.

[Francis M · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a good book because of how troy is in the Atlanta falcons now and he's one of their best players leading them to go to the super bowl. The good thing about this book is that troy seen his dad again, but the bad thing is that ever since he seen his dad he's is not focused and confused.In the middle of the book they lost because troy got distracted when he seen his dad watching him and he got hurt kinda bad.

[Jonah · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Big Time by Tim Green is a good book. It is mysterious, interesting, and funny too. It is about this kid, Troy White, who finally gets to see his dad, Drew, for the first time at age 13. His team just won the jh football state championship and he is getting offers from NFL teams to be their football genius. His dad is his even his lawyer. Everything is working out perfectly until Troy learns a few things about his dad he didn't know.

I liked the book because you are thinking about Troy and his NFL contracts and then everything goes wrong with his dad. It is an interesting football novel and then it suddenly turns into a crime. I didn't expect it ending how it did. There was nothing I disliked about the book. I think any kid from 4th grade to 9th grade would like it.

[Morgan G · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is sport lovers. A young boy named troy is a football genius he calls play's for the Atlanta Falcons. On his own he is a young quarterback for his own team. He just won the champion game. Now he wants o meet his father. but his mom will not let him because what he has put here through. Troy finds his own way to find his dad and get into the "big time" with his football career in the NFL. His dad is the one he wants to be bye his side when he signs to a new NFL team. Will he win a find his dad and sign a new team or go home empty handed?

[Rainier Birco · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked how the author made a story about a father and son relationship of how Troy didn't know his dad till they won the championship and his mom didn't want him to see his dad because of his past issues he had over the years when troy was still little like gambling and etc. What i didn't like about this story was that Troy's dad jumped off a bridge when the FBI agents were closing in on him I mean the author could've done a better job on that part. Overall i really liked this book and I hope the author can still be making these kind of books.

[Ryoichi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was very well written. Like the other Troy White books in the series this book gives you an inside in the NFL. This book also gives you a bit of info about the FBI and criminal activity. This book was amazing and very dramatic and has lots of sport action which is why I gave it 5/5 stars. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes sports.

[Jaxon B · Rating 5 out of 5]

The main character is Troy and I can connect with him because he likes football just like me. This book reminds me of the time that my football team won a big championship. I gave this book a five star because Tim Green puts a lot of work in his books and there just so good! The ending kind of left you hanging because some guy shows up and says "I think im your father". Then its over.

[Morgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think that this book was a very well written book. I didn't read books that are previous to this one in the series but, it was really easy to pick off where he had left off. I also really liked the book because it had really good character development and a really good way to have the problem be his dad. The only problem I had was that the problem wasn't really wrapped up the way I liked.

[Eric Schlarman · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was very good to me because it was football related. I also liked it because it was an inner struggle between him and his mom and his dad. He got offered lots of money and a crime was in the making between his dad and his money this why I really like this book.

[Connery · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would have never read this book if Tim Green himself didn't read the first two chapters to me and my school. He is a talented writer and knows exactly what we want to read.

[Aryan. N · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was really fun to read and it was extremely entertaining. This book should be an influenction book in my opinion.

[Ely Miller · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall this book about the young football genius wasn't what I had anticipated. At multiple points in the story i found myself confused and not knowing exactly what was going on. Regardless of these moments I would still say it was a decent book. This book although it wasn't as descriptive of a story line as i would have liked, I thought the parts i liked were great. Parts like him meeting his at his home and at the game or how that all effected him.
With my thoughts gathered I think this book is only worthy of my 3 star rating. Like i said i got lost at points one example of that was that he was working with the falcons. This was confusing because he plays QB for his middle school and is a genius with play recognition i didn't get whether is was the NFL falcons or some other falcons team. If it was how i thought it was then it just doesn't make sense for a middle school kid to work for an NFL team. As parts like were confusing and took my mind off others part were great. Parts like him seeing his father at the game with his friends and with g money watching with his father. The particular part brought of an idea to his dad and showed troys real emotion to the situation. His dad who was with g money showed he was likely to have something fishy going on as proved later on in the story with the FBI. It also showed that troy was willing to do anything as he ripped the card from Tate's hand after his mother took his. From the good parts and bad parts of this story I thought they evened out and this is why my rating was a 3 star.

Throughout this story there was a defining factor of important quotes but the one that mean most to me and the one i thought was best was from Pg 272 where Seth says "It always ends too soon, and every year, if you are lucky enough to make it, your team changes. Something always changes. That's life. You keep moving". This quote speaks a lot about troys life and in a way gives lessons to the real world. For troy he now knows his dad was a jerk and he knows that and knows who he is but has to just move on and forget those series of events. He has to move on from him. This is similar to real life to because we can't stay in the moment. Whether its sad or happy the moment will pass and you just have to pass it as quickly as it happens so you don't dwell on it and stay with it. That quote was my favorite for this story because I relate to it, Troy relates to it and if i would assume it relates to everybody in this world.

This story shows multiple shifts in drama and passion and overall creates for a good plot. This stories exposition i would say was him meeting his father at his moms house. This is the exposition because its really the first important event in the story. This causes for him to dwell on it and get in his mind making him do things he wouldn't normally do like running away from home since his mother didn't want him to see him. After this he is offered a job on the falcons sideline. This cause the next major event in the rising action. That event is him seeing his father at the game with g money. Seeing him with his success and how nice he was with him causes him to file a lawsuit against him mother so he could see him. This in a way works he sees him a little and offers to represent him due to troys high growing popularity in football. After all this he is offered a 3 year 15 mil deal from the jets that his dad got and he has a decision to make. As we get closer to the climax his mother suspicious about the deal and his dad starts a FBI investigation on him and this causes for the climax where his dad was loundering and was in millions of debt facing 10 years in jail. Once troy finds out realizes mom was right. He realizes that you trust the people you know you can trust. He find out that he just want to be happy. So instead of going for fame and money his resolution for his goal of happiness is to go and play in the florida vs Georgia game. The resolution to the problem is him changing his goals and that what i believe to be the plot of the story.

The theme to this story is quite simple. The whole story practically evolves around it and truly shows how it helps and what could happen if you don't. To me i would say theme is that you must consider happiness and comfort over glory and money. Throughout the story troy starts to get away from what made him happy and he started to taste the tip of fame and richness. As he started getting deeper and deeper into the idea of that he found out it was full of liars like his dad and realized how he lost touch with his self. This moment made him realize that he wanted to be where he was happy and felt comfortable and realized that was all that mattered. The temptation took him away from the theme but as he saw the truth of it he chose the way where happiness is guaranteed for him.

[Jordan Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jordan Jones
Mr Michael Sparks
8th grade English language arts
October 5, 2024

Troy was a football player that could predict plays and was a part of a professional football team but the only thing missing was his dad so he adventures off to find his dad but comes across a couple of problems trying to find his dad but finally gets to meet his dad but more problems come from the different situations that him and his dad would be in so at one of his games he sees his dad with a rapper called G money and Troy wants his dad to sue his mom because he can be with his dad and his dad gives him a card with info on it and a phone number on it as well and he plays around with it in his pocket and calls it after a long time of waiting and he sneaks out of his house to see his father but he comes back and is in some big trouble and troy has a injured finger and he takes pills to help the pain but it makes him feel dizzy and sick so then he cant play football so one morning he decides not to take the pain killers and he is able to play football well but he gets moved to a different team.

Troy went to see his dad again but his mom said no but Troy did not listen to his mom and went anyway and his dad asked Troy if his mom told him it was ok for him to be visiting him. And troy said no but can this just be between me and you and his dad said sure but don't do this again or i will have to tell your mom and troy agreed with his dad and talked with him for a little bit and then left his dads house. Troy and gramps have a talk about the possession of Troy and how Troy's dad can sue Troy's mom over Custody of Troy and gramps says that that won't be good for Troy's mom and they talk more and then gramps goes to church with them and after church Troy's mom and troy's friends watch football with him and Troy puts his hurt finger in a ice bath bowl and keeps playing with the card and his friends leave Troy goes to sleep thinking of his father all night.

Troy and his dad talk with Troy's mom about a trip to new york and lunch and swimming they talk later that night about were they will go and troy falls asleep and wakes up early the next morning and talks with his mom and she says that she is ok with it and troy called his dad and they planed when they would leave and be back. And troy's dad picks him up but his mom had one question and she said why do you have swim gear and troys dad responded with we are going swimming me and my son and she said ok and they left.

Troy and his dad go swimming not at a pool but at a aquarium and troy tells his dad its a fish tank and his dad says ya but im rich and you don't have to pay to swim in a fish tank when you have a lot of money like me and troy says to his dad really and his dad says yes its true and they enter the aquarium and then swim with sharks and troy gets scared but his dad is there and he feels comfortable with his dad and feels closer to him.

[Sean Unabia · Rating 4 out of 5]

"I think I'm your farther." The book The Big Time is realistic fiction. I liked The Big Time because it kept my attention.

Troy's farther who he never met went to Troy's championship party to meet him.Troy's dad wanted to visitation rights. His mom refused. Troy tried running away from home but his mom caught him and wouldn't let him leave. His mom grounded him from football and going outside. Troy's grandpa helped Troy reach an agreement with his mom to be able to visit his dad when she approved. After Troy met his dad he realized his dad had a gambling problem. His mom had warned him about his dad's addiction and that was the reason she didn't want him to see him. The FBI were looking for his dad. To escape his dad jumped from a bridge and left town.Troy played football again and they won their last game barley.Troy is at Atlanta Georgia. The time period is over a couple of months. It is natural for people to want to meet their family. Troy wanted to see his dad. But his mom said he can't . Troy made a deal with his mom. If he behaves he gets to see his dad. Troy got to see his dad . Troy's dad was a gambler. Troy's dad jumped off the bridge to escape FBI.

The major event that changed the character was meeting his dad. He had never met his farther before that time that he could remember. His mom had tried to keep him form meeting his dad. As the title suggest he had to face a big time. His big time was meeting his farther and realizing his mother had told him the truth. Troy's dad never told Troy that he has a gambling problem. This made things worse. Even his mom didn't tell Troy that he had a gambling problem.

My favorite part was when the last 30 seconds of the game. Troy was gonna pass it but he didn't. He ran and scored a touchdown. It is my favorite part because he saved his whole team by losing there last game. I thought they were going to lose. I was surprised when Troy's mom agreed to the deal so Troy can see his dad if he behaved.It surprised me because I thought his mom wanted to prevent him from seeing his dad.

I rate this book 4 out of 5. I gave it a 4 because it kept me wanted to read more. After it kept on leaving me on a cliff hanger. I recommend The Big Time because it doesn't really talk about football. It gets interesting every chapter. I suggest you read it because it is a really good book.

[Charles · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the fourth book in Tim Green’s “Football Genius” series and is weaker than the first three. The premise is still the same, Troy White is a football savant that can somehow predict what play an offense is going to run. While he must observe a few offensive series before the skill kicks in, he has demonstrated it many times and he is working for the Atlanta Falcons. At the end of the previous book, Troy has helped the Falcons reach the playoffs and Troy’s youth football team has won the championship. There is a victory party and Troy’s long absent father (Drew) unexpectedly shows up.
The problem with this book is that financial games are being played rather than football. Drew is an attorney and pushes hard to be Troy’s agent and in fact negotiates an eight-figure deal for Troy. However, all does not conform to Troy’s ideal and there are reasons to believe that Drew has nefarious reasons for his reappearance and sudden deep interest in Troy. Drew has associated with some very shady characters and Troy must make a major decision concerning what to do regarding his father.
This is fundamentally not a book about football, the main theme is the uncertainty about the motives of the sudden appearance of an absent relative when another relative is suddenly wealthy in a very public way. Especially when the newly rich person is a child and the absent relative is a parent. While this does happen more often than it should, it makes for a sad tale for young adults. No football games are played in this story.

[Brian M · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Big Time by Tim Green is a realistic fiction book. Troy White is a football genius. He is working for the Atlanta falcons and is making big money. He can tell the defensive coach whatever ever play the other team runs and is always right so the defense is ready to make the tackle. Troy also plays football and is great. He has a big game against the best players in Florida and the best players in Atlanta. How will the game come out?
Troy White is the main character. He lives with his mother in Atlanta. Troy doesn't live with his dad because his mother said it did "something a long time ago" and won't forgive him. Troy is trying to help his dad come home to the family. The theme is preserving because he is always preserving in the big game and with his dad.
This is a realalistic fiction book because it's fake but could happen in real life.

Troy faces against his mother (character vs character) to get his dad back home. He leaves the house at night to talk to his father and more.
Character vs self (internal conflict) he is debating on what to do in his big game and to get his father back home.

My opinion on the book is that I didn't like its very much. It's not one of those books where I just can't put it down. I would rate it 2/5
Any boy that likes sports would like this book.

[Sam Burman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ever wonder what it's like to be born with special talents? Read "The Big Time" published by Tim Green in 2010 and find out about a young boy's life filled with different excitements that come and go. This book is part of a series, but you do not need to read other books to enjoy this one.

One reason that made me really enjoy this book is that it was about a kid with born talents. This is something that is not very likely of happening in the real world, so it's cool to read about a fictional kid living out his dream. In this book Troy White, a young kid of Atlanta is helping the NFL team, Atlanta Falcons, to run their plays, as he can tell what the opposing team might do. The second reason that made me really enjoy this book is that aside of all the talents this kid has and everything that surrounds that, there is a really interesting plot twist in the beginning of the book where Troy gets a nock on his door from his father that he hasn't seen his life. Troy's father plays a key role in Troy's future decision making with what he wants to do with his talents.

Once again, if you want to read a book about a young kid with natural talents that is chasing his dream with some family plot twists in between, this book is for you to read.

[Wyatt Hellbusch · Rating 4 out of 5]

I gave The Big Time 4 stars. I liked it a lot, but some parts were kind of predictable and reminded me of other football books I’ve read. Still, the characters were really fun and the story kept me interested the whole time. It wasn’t perfect, but it was definitely a good read.

What I liked most was how real the characters felt. Their friendships and the stuff they went through made it easy to relate to them. The football games were super exciting, and I loved how the author made the big moments feel intense. Some of the character stuff really stuck with me, which made the story better.

I’d say kids around 9 to 13 would like it the most, but older teens and even adults who like sports stories could enjoy it too. It’s easy to read, but it also talks about teamwork, never giving up, and growing as a person—stuff anyone can connect with.

If you like sports, especially football, this book is for you. It’s perfect if you like stories about friendship, overcoming challenges, or rooting for the underdog. Honestly, it was fun, inspiring, and had characters I actually cared about.

[Lucas Dodson · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the book “The Big Time” by Tim Green Troy figures out he has a dad and he wants to meet him. One problem is that his father divorced with his mother and his mother beloved he is up to no good. Troy talks to his dad at a football game with a famous rapper named G money. Later the FBI starts to research his father and figures out he is seriously in debt and in big trouble and his father wanted to steal Troys money. Does he get the money or does G money follow through with his deal? Figure out in this book.

I personally like this book because this books main focus is on sports, my favorite subject of course, and it isn’t a super sort book. It has 277 pages but still manages to fit all the thrilling and sport qualities into the book.

I personally think this book should be read by kids of the age of 10-15. Not the longest book I’ve ever read but you still need a vocabulary for this book. Although that’s my opinion there might be adults really into sports that would also love this book but mainly the book is probably from ages 10-15.

[Koltin · Rating 5 out of 5]

¨The Big Time¨ is an amazing book by Tim Green. The book is about a kid named Troy who is a football player and has a dream to be in the NFL. After his championship win, his mom threw a party. Then his dad showed up who hasn't been there for his whole life, except for now. Tory´s mom was mad at his dad and won't let him in the party. After the party, Troy ran away to find his dad but ran back to his house. Later on, he sees his dad with a famous rapper. But his mom was there and made Troy get away from him, but his dad slipped his phone number to him. Troy wants his dad to represent him as an agent but his mom won't let him. Read the rest of the book to find out what happens next. This book is the best book I have read so far because I like football and the book is all about football. I gave this book a 5 out of 5 for its surprising beginning and creativity. The theme of this book is to always try your best. If you like anything about football read this book.

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Big Time, By Tim Green, is a realistic fiction/sports book about a boy named Troy who has everything going for him. He has agents begging to represent him as a ‘football genius’, he is helping his favorite team, the Atlanta Falcons, in the playoffs, and his own team just won the state championship and is now on an all star team. His whole life gets turned upside down when a lawyer comes knocking on his door and says he is Troy’s father. From that instant everything changes. Now he must sneak around with his father and devise a plan to get his father partial custody so he can finally get to know his father. I think this was a really good book and would recommend it to anyone who likes sports books. Not only does it have lots of action in sports games, but it also has a good plot that some people may be able to relate to outside of sports.

[Kyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the book "The Big Time" by Tim Green because I love football. This is a great book for kids who maybe are having issues within their family. The main character is Troy, 12-year-old boy who can predict NFL offensive plays! Troy is helping the Atlanta Falcons and the one thing he's always dreamed off was having a dad. His dad finds Troy and Troy wants to spend all the time in the world with him, but his mom is against unless he sues for visitation rights. Troy's father does make a lawsuit, so they can be together again. Is Troy's dad using him for his talents, or does he truly want to meet his son?

[Carissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have really enjoyed this entire series and waiting to read the next one. Sometimes I wanted to slap Troy for being so stubborn, but if he was always cooperative it wouldn't have been a good series! Typical tween really! Enjoyable, unique, and you really don't even need to like or understand sports or football to enjoy them, but they are great books for teens and tweens those who do like sports and a cool storyline to go along. I've never read a book by Tim Green that wasn't really compelling, even as an adult! :)

[Melinda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yet another great book to read aloud to my son (age 9) and daughter (age 7). The emotional issues and plot line would be too intense for them to read alone, but this made for many evenings of reading enjoyment. Most nights they begged for another chapter.

Fast-paced and intense, in this book Troy spends more time navigating his mysterious father's arrival in his life than he does on the football field. Wonderful way to expand children's vocabulary and build a love of reading from our son's love of football.

We'll be following Troy's story and plan to find the next book in the series.

[Grant Knapke · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Big Time is a good book. It is a interesting and funny book. The kid Troy White finally gets to see his dad for the first time at the age of 13. His team just won the junior high state championship and is now getting offers from NFL teams. I like this book because everything is going good with him and the NFL contracts then everything goes wrong with his dad . It goes wrong because he finds out a few things about his dad he didn’t know . There isn’t anything with this book i didn’t like . Overall it is a interesting story to read.

[Justin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Where do I start for this astonishing, breathtaking, adventurous book. Not a dull moment through the whole story. Right from the beginning I had been sucked in and here's why. Every page was filled with more then just detail, but emotions. It felt as if I was Troy, living the football dream. But also, the mystery to find out what his future holds. i highly recommend this book for kids around a middle school age who are fascinated by sports. The reason why is because it's about sports, and it's not that hard of a read. So this is who I think should read this passage, but also why.