The school year brings a run of firsts for Demon: first scrimmage, JV game, tackle, passing yards, and a first serious dance date that Angus organizes, complete with a thrift-store white suit and corsage. He endures his first dentist visit and, more sobering, his first time carrying Coach Winfield upstairs after finding him passed out, as Angus frames the drinking as grief tied to his late wife and the son Coach never had.

School becomes more engaging through Mr. Armstrong, who drills grammar and challenges stereotypes, teaching about Appalachian exploitation, the Great Migration, and the banjo’s African roots. After older boys cruise the lot with U.S. and Confederate flags, Mr. Armstrong publicly points out the contradiction and notes local mountaineers’ Union loyalties, quieting the crowd and pulling students to his side.

For a Backgrounds project, Mr. Armstrong urges Demon to investigate his rumored Melungeon roots. Mr. Dick dives in, explaining the mixed ancestry, the courthouse strategy of claiming “Melungeon” as a legal identity, and family history. Reading Mr. Dick’s write-up, including details of his father returning to Lee County, leaves Demon privately in tears.

Outside class, Demon dates widely while Emmy cools on him. On the field he meshes with teammates like QB Cush Polk and RB Turp Trussell. His gifted period at the high school becomes a sanctuary as Ms. Annie has him experiment with media, perspective, and anatomy; she even sits for a portrait, and time flies in her room.

Angus launches a push for an academic team, but a skeptical teacher and checked-out principal stall it despite Mr. Armstrong’s support and critique of underfunding. A promised gifted trip to Williamsburg, Busch Gardens, and Virginia Beach is canceled for budget, then revived by parent drivers. Demon's car—with a church mom and classmates—turns back at Christiansburg after repeated carsickness, ending his hope of seeing the ocean.