Tim Green: The Big Time

Troy congratulated not just his best friends but the rest of his teammates. Seth gave Troy a hug, then pulled away at the sight of the approaching Georgia Bulldogs' head coach, Mark Richt. The two men shook hands and began to talk. Troy turned and met his mom and Gramps at the fence. They hugged him, too, and said they'd meet him in the tunnel, where only family with passes were allowed to go.

Troy changed into his street clothes and got to the tunnel as fast as he could. He stood waiting with the rest of his teammates, searching the crowd beyond the fence as, one by one, families were allowed into the separate area. In the swarm of arms and legs, banners and pom-poms, hats and grinning faces, Troy spotted a face that made his heart clench. He blinked and looked again.

The face was gone, and Troy had no idea if it had been a dream or not. He staggered toward the fence and gripped the cold metal mesh. Pressing his forehead into the wire, he strained to see it again. For what seemed like a lifetime, he looked. He only stopped when he felt his mom's hand on his shoulder and heard the warm, rough voice of his gramps. Troy stepped away, still looking, still wondering if the smiling, winking face had really been his father's.

TIM GREEN, himself an adopted child who has written movingly of his own search for his birth parents in A MAN AND HIS MOTHER, has brought the experience of those feelings to Troy White, whose longing to know his father was evoked in Tim's first novel for young readers, the New York Times bestseller FOOTBALL GENIUS. A former star defensive end with the Atlanta Falcons, Tim earned his law degree from Syracuse University and began writing bestselling books for adults, including THE DARK SIDE OF THE GAME and FALSE CONVICTIONS. He's worked as an NFL analyst for FOX Sports and most recently hosted Find My Family for ABC TV.

Tim lives with his wife, Illyssa, and their five children in upstate New York, where he enjoys sailing and coaching his children's football and baseball teams. You can visit him at www.timgreenbooks.com.