Fourth and Long Gone
Encyclopedia
Fourth and Long Gone is a 1985 novel
written by college football coaching legend Pepper Rodgers
. Although fictional, it is a roman à clef
based on true stories. Unlike more serious exposé-style sports fiction written by authors such as former Dallas Cowboys
receiver
Peter Gent
, who authored the gritty North Dallas Forty
and the darker The Franchise, Fourth and Long Gone is more light-hearted and bawdy.
to the legendary Coach Reginald Benbow "Buddy" Shavers at the powerhouse West Alabama
State University in Evergreen. When Lee is hired as the new head coach job at West Alabama's historic in-state rival, the East Alabama University in Stanleyville, Shavers takes great offense because their rivalry is a bitter one. West Alabama has been extremely dominant in their meetings; the last East Alabama victory was years earlier when Buck Lee was a young assistant. Shavers didn't take to losing to them well.
In his last meeting with Shavers as a West Alabama assistant coach, Buck Lee accuses Buddy Shavers of sabotaging his chances of getting head coaching positions elsewhere, and cites, in particular, his failure to get the job at the United States Air Force Academy
because Shavers said he had sex
with West Alabama cheerleaders.
But Buck Lee has a plan to beat West Alabama: sign a phenomenal high school
running back
named Eaarnel Simpson. A certain Heisman Trophy
candidate, most of the big name colleges want to sign him. But Coach Shavers is known as the master recruiter, so Buck Lee, believing he knows Shavers' recruiting style and tricks, takes the sole responsibility of signing Eaarnel Simpson and building a winning football team around him.
To do that, he uses a unique clique of assistant coaches, friends, and supporters who aid him in recruiting players, which means that, in one case, they have to essentially recruit the domineering father of a quarterback
prospect. One of Lee's top supporters is a real estate
agent who variously portrays a veterinarian
, a gynecologist
, and a Catholic
priest
.
Thanks to winning a lottery, East Alabama signs Eaarnel Simpson. Buck Lee believes that he's finally one-upped the master recruiter Shavers, but he has to defeat Shavers and West Alabama on the gridiron. However, Eaarnel Simpson fractures his ankle
in the previous game and can't play in West Alabama game. A victory seems improbable, but the Rattlers do defeat the Hawks and Buck Lee wins Coach of the Year.
But the success comes at a price: his family leaves him.
, Georgia
-born Buck Lee has a fear of dogs
and fear of flying
, never voted
in his life, and has a chronic jock itch
problem. He's also got a beautiful wife named Gail and a son named Bucky.
running back Herschel Walker
. The recruiting of Eaarnel Simpson parallels the recruiting of Walker. However, unlike Eaarnel Simpson, Herschel Walker didn't fracture his ankle in his freshman season. After his junior year, Walker left college and signed with Donald Trump's
New Jersey Generals
of the fledgling United States Football League
. After the USFL folded three seasons later, Walker played for the National Football League's
Dallas Cowboys
, Minnesota Vikings
, New York Giants
, and Philadelphia Eagles
.
At 6'-1" and 225 pounds, Walker had the rare combination of size and great speed. However, his twelve-year professional career was seen by some as somewhat of a disappointment, and due to the cumulative effects of nagging injuries, he was relegated to part-time status in his final few seasons, usually as a third or fourth receiver. He finished his NFL career with 8,225 yards rushing and 512 receptions for 4,859 yards. Scoring-wise, he has 61 rushing touchdown
s and 21 receiving touchdowns.
, which is located in the western part of the state in Tuscaloosa
and Auburn University
, which is located in the eastern part of the state in Auburn
. The two teams meet annually in the Iron Bowl
. Coincidentally, Auburn University was originally called East Alabama Male College upon its founding in 1856. After several name changes, it officially adopted the Auburn name in 1960.
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
written by college football coaching legend Pepper Rodgers
Pepper Rodgers
Franklin C. "Pepper" Rodgers is a former American football player and coach in the United States. He served as the head coach at the University of Kansas , University of California, Los Angeles , and the Georgia Institute of Technology , compiling a career college football record of...
. Although fictional, it is a roman à clef
Roman à clef
Roman à clef or roman à clé , French for "novel with a key", is a phrase used to describe a novel about real life, overlaid with a façade of fiction. The fictitious names in the novel represent real people, and the "key" is the relationship between the nonfiction and the fiction...
based on true stories. Unlike more serious exposé-style sports fiction written by authors such as former Dallas Cowboys
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
receiver
Wide receiver
A wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football, and is the key player in most of the passing plays. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible to catch a forward pass. The two players who begin play at the ends of the offensive line are eligible...
Peter Gent
Peter Gent
George Davis Peter Gent was a Michigan State University basketball player and National Football League wide receiver turned novelist.-Early days:...
, who authored the gritty North Dallas Forty
North Dallas Forty (film)
North Dallas Forty is a 1979 dramatic film starring Nick Nolte, Mac Davis, and G. D. Spradlin. It was directed by Ted Kotcheff and based on the best selling novel by Peter Gent: the screenplay was by Kotcheff, Gent, Frank Yablans and Nancy Dowd ....
and the darker The Franchise, Fourth and Long Gone is more light-hearted and bawdy.
Plot summary
Charles Forrest "Buck" Lee is an assistant coachCoach (sport)
In sports, a coach is an individual involved in the direction, instruction and training of the operations of a sports team or of individual sportspeople.-Staff:...
to the legendary Coach Reginald Benbow "Buddy" Shavers at the powerhouse West Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
State University in Evergreen. When Lee is hired as the new head coach job at West Alabama's historic in-state rival, the East Alabama University in Stanleyville, Shavers takes great offense because their rivalry is a bitter one. West Alabama has been extremely dominant in their meetings; the last East Alabama victory was years earlier when Buck Lee was a young assistant. Shavers didn't take to losing to them well.
In his last meeting with Shavers as a West Alabama assistant coach, Buck Lee accuses Buddy Shavers of sabotaging his chances of getting head coaching positions elsewhere, and cites, in particular, his failure to get the job at the United States Air Force Academy
United States Air Force Academy
The United States Air Force Academy is an accredited college for the undergraduate education of officer candidates for the United States Air Force. Its campus is located immediately north of Colorado Springs in El Paso County, Colorado, United States...
because Shavers said he had sex
Adultery
Adultery is sexual infidelity to one's spouse, and is a form of extramarital sex. It originally referred only to sex between a woman who was married and a person other than her spouse. Even in cases of separation from one's spouse, an extramarital affair is still considered adultery.Adultery is...
with West Alabama cheerleaders.
But Buck Lee has a plan to beat West Alabama: sign a phenomenal high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
running back
Running back
A running back is a gridiron football position, who is typically lined up in the offensive backfield. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback for a rushing play, to catch passes from out of the backfield, and to block.There are usually one or two running...
named Eaarnel Simpson. A certain Heisman Trophy
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , is awarded annually to the player deemed the most outstanding player in collegiate football. It was created in 1935 as the Downtown Athletic Club trophy and renamed in 1936 following the death of the Club's athletic director, John Heisman The Heisman Memorial...
candidate, most of the big name colleges want to sign him. But Coach Shavers is known as the master recruiter, so Buck Lee, believing he knows Shavers' recruiting style and tricks, takes the sole responsibility of signing Eaarnel Simpson and building a winning football team around him.
To do that, he uses a unique clique of assistant coaches, friends, and supporters who aid him in recruiting players, which means that, in one case, they have to essentially recruit the domineering father of a quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
prospect. One of Lee's top supporters is a real estate
Real estate
In general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...
agent who variously portrays a veterinarian
Veterinarian
A veterinary physician, colloquially called a vet, shortened from veterinarian or veterinary surgeon , is a professional who treats disease, disorder and injury in animals....
, a gynecologist
Gynaecology
Gynaecology or gynecology is the medical practice dealing with the health of the female reproductive system . Literally, outside medicine, it means "the science of women"...
, and a Catholic
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
.
Thanks to winning a lottery, East Alabama signs Eaarnel Simpson. Buck Lee believes that he's finally one-upped the master recruiter Shavers, but he has to defeat Shavers and West Alabama on the gridiron. However, Eaarnel Simpson fractures his ankle
Ankle
The ankle joint is formed where the foot and the leg meet. The ankle, or talocrural joint, is a synovial hinge joint that connects the distal ends of the tibia and fibula in the lower limb with the proximal end of the talus bone in the foot...
in the previous game and can't play in West Alabama game. A victory seems improbable, but the Rattlers do defeat the Hawks and Buck Lee wins Coach of the Year.
But the success comes at a price: his family leaves him.
Buck Lee
The AtlantaAtlanta, Georgia
Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
-born Buck Lee has a fear of dogs
Fear of dogs
Cynophobia is the abnormal fear of dogs. Cynophobia is classified as a specific phobia, under the subtype "animal phobias". According to Dr. Timothy O. Rentz of the Laboratory for the Study of Anxiety Disorders at the University of Texas, animal phobias are among the most common of the specific...
and fear of flying
Fear of flying
A fear of flying is a fear of being on an airplane , or other flying vehicle, such as a helicopter, while in flight. It is also sometimes referred to as aerophobia, aviatophobia, aviophobia or pteromerhanophobia....
, never voted
Voting
Voting is a method for a group such as a meeting or an electorate to make a decision or express an opinion—often following discussions, debates, or election campaigns. It is often found in democracies and republics.- Reasons for voting :...
in his life, and has a chronic jock itch
Jock itch
Tinea cruris, also known as crotch itch, crotch rot, Dhobie itch, eczema marginatum, gym itch, jock itch, and ringworm of the groin in American English is a dermatophyte fungal infection of the groin region in either sex, though more often seen in males...
problem. He's also got a beautiful wife named Gail and a son named Bucky.
The Eaarnel Simpson/Herschel Walker comparison
Pepper Rodgers has claimed that Eaarnel Simpson is a direct reference to former University of GeorgiaUniversity of Georgia
The University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States...
running back Herschel Walker
Herschel Walker
Herschel Junior Walker is an American mixed martial artist and a former American football player. He played college football for the University of Georgia Bulldogs and earned the 1982 Heisman Trophy. He began his professional career with the New Jersey Generals of the United States Football League...
. The recruiting of Eaarnel Simpson parallels the recruiting of Walker. However, unlike Eaarnel Simpson, Herschel Walker didn't fracture his ankle in his freshman season. After his junior year, Walker left college and signed with Donald Trump's
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump, Sr. is an American business magnate, television personality and author. He is the chairman and president of The Trump Organization and the founder of Trump Entertainment Resorts. Trump's extravagant lifestyle, outspoken manner and role on the NBC reality show The Apprentice have...
New Jersey Generals
New Jersey Generals
The New Jersey Generals were a franchise of the United States Football League established in 1982 to begin play in the spring and summer of 1983. The team played three seasons from 1983-85, winning 31 regular-season games and losing 25 while going 0-2 in postseason competition...
of the fledgling United States Football League
United States Football League
The United States Football League was an American football league which was in active operation from 1983 to 1987. It played a spring/summer schedule in its first three seasons and a traditional autumn/winter schedule was set to commence before league operations ceased.The USFL was conceived in...
. After the USFL folded three seasons later, Walker played for the National Football League's
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
Dallas Cowboys
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
, Minnesota Vikings
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League as an expansion team in 1960...
, New York Giants
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, representing the New York City metropolitan area. The Giants are currently members of the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
, and Philadelphia Eagles
Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
.
At 6'-1" and 225 pounds, Walker had the rare combination of size and great speed. However, his twelve-year professional career was seen by some as somewhat of a disappointment, and due to the cumulative effects of nagging injuries, he was relegated to part-time status in his final few seasons, usually as a third or fourth receiver. He finished his NFL career with 8,225 yards rushing and 512 receptions for 4,859 yards. Scoring-wise, he has 61 rushing touchdown
Touchdown
A touchdown is a means of scoring in American and Canadian football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone.-Description:...
s and 21 receiving touchdowns.
The colleges
Although the rival schools, West Alabama and East Alabama are completely fictitious, it is possible that they are references to the University of AlabamaUniversity of Alabama
The University of Alabama is a public coeducational university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States....
, which is located in the western part of the state in Tuscaloosa
Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Tuscaloosa is a city in and the seat of Tuscaloosa County in west central Alabama . Located on the Black Warrior River, it is the fifth-largest city in Alabama, with a population of 90,468 in 2010...
and Auburn University
Auburn University
Auburn University is a public university located in Auburn, Alabama, United States. With more than 25,000 students and 1,200 faculty members, it is one of the largest universities in the state. Auburn was chartered on February 7, 1856, as the East Alabama Male College, a private liberal arts...
, which is located in the eastern part of the state in Auburn
Auburn, Alabama
Auburn is a city in Lee County, Alabama, United States. It is the largest city in eastern Alabama with a 2010 population of 53,380. It is a principal city of the Auburn-Opelika Metropolitan Area...
. The two teams meet annually in the Iron Bowl
Iron Bowl
The Iron Bowl is an American college football rivalry game played annually by the Alabama Crimson Tide football team of the University of Alabama and the Auburn Tigers football team of Auburn University. The series is considered one of the best and most hard-fought rivalries in all of sports...
. Coincidentally, Auburn University was originally called East Alabama Male College upon its founding in 1856. After several name changes, it officially adopted the Auburn name in 1960.