Mitch Sloan loves numbers. He's a wiz with statistics. He likes talking about numbers so much that he can get annoying. It was a problem at his old school, but his family has just moved to Indiana, and so far things are good. Sure, he ranked last in the football tryouts, but he has made a friend who likes statistics just as much as him. If only he were as confident with the school bully as he is with numbers, things would be almost perfect.

Even though Mitch doesn't like playing sports, he loves watching them. Because, you know, statistics. Indiana folks love their teams. Mitch realizes right away that he can use this to his advantage. It starts off with him making a bet with another kid, and eventually grows into a gambling business. He gets rich, but all the kid gamblers just break even. As you can guess, a good scheme only lasts so long before you get busted.

I liked this book. It isn't on the same level as books by Mike Lupica or Tim Green which are serious about the game, but it still has some play by play action. It's kind of a younger, more light-hearted version of Tim Green's [b: Football Genius|1025134|Football Genius (Football Genius, #1)|Tim Green|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1442514552s/1025134.jpg|2360403] in that the main character in both books are able to predict plays. This one has a more quirky, sarcastic edge to it. ( )

Mitch Sloan loves money and business. He’s not good at sports like his brother so he doesn’t exactly fit in at school. He prefers fantasy sports where he can deal with “figuring out strategy and how to win” (p. 7). After bombing out on the field and after winning a bet on a football game with his friend Jamie, Mitch comes up with a money-making scheme, invites Jamie in on it, and not only earns money but also popularity. He even helps out his financially strapped family. Of course, gambling is illegal in school so they get caught and punished. Now his best friend Jamie isn’t speaking to him any more. In finding new ways to help his family, Mitch earns respect and trust and ultimately, he wins back his friend. A fast-moving and engaging story, the novel contains enough math and financial concepts to warrant reading it in a math class. ( )