At night, Riggins and other upperclassmen invoke the traditional Panthers freshman initiation: The Naked Mile. Everyone has to strip down and run to the water tower, but since J.D. is now QB1 and therefore special, he has to run to the field house by himself. Working later, Taylor is disgusted that J.D. fell for the naked mile trick. Mortified, J.D. pleads with Taylor not to tell his dad; Taylor wouldn’t dream of it.

Erin has packed a trailer full of her possessions, and is preparing to drive with baby Noah to Connecticut to live with her parents. Promising that his plan to make a nest egg by fixing up Buddy’s house will work, Jason is devastated to say goodbye. Meanwhile, preparations are underway for Saturday night’s school dance. Tami has to chaperone and wants Taylor to promise to be her date, but neither Taylor nor Julie are interested in attending.

It’s dinnertime at the McCoy house. Julie wants to know if J.D. has spied any cute cheerleaders, but Joe claims that J.D.’s too busy to get serious about girls. Joe acknowledges that J.D. is under a lot of pressure, but he’s real proud of him.When Grandma learns that Saracen has been demoted to QB2, she resolves to give Taylor a piece of her mind and set the situation right.

Riggins skips school for the first day of work on the flip. Jason and Billy are immediately at odds: Jason has a budget and a schedule, but Billy doesn’t like being told what to do. Landry rehearses with his band — yet another depressing power ballad about losing Tyra. When Landry accuses his band mates of sucking, they quit. Landry knows that Jimmy the drummer will be back tomorrow.

Cash stops by Applebee’s to urge Tyra to take off work early to join him at the pool hall. She can’t, having promised to make decorations for the dance. Besides she has to work overtime all month to earn money for her college applications, which are expensive. Julie watches as Cash urges Tyra to take money for her applications, and promises to pick her up after the dance.

Taylor isn’t happy to see the older guys teasing J.D. at practice for his naked mile run. Afterwards, he pulls Riggins into the office. There’s a big game coming up, and J.D. needs to know that the team is behind him. Taylor asks for Riggins to fix it, without defining what that might mean. Later, Riggins insists on giving J.D. a ride home from practice, giving him a colorful tour of Dillon’s bars and strip clubs.

Angela lays into Tyra for working on her college applications while Mindy is trying on wedding dresses. How is she going to hang on to her cowboy if she goes to college in San Francisco? Tyra claims that Cash has been supportive, giving her money for application fees. Stunned, Angela claims this is a very good sign — men just don’t normally like to take care of women like that. Tyra better hang on to him.

Taylor and Julie run into Saracen and Grandma in the grocery store. As Grandma lays into Taylor, Julie and Saracen wander off. Saracen admits that he’s been spending more time on the bench with Landry since his demotion, and it hasn’t been too harsh. Grandma makes peace with Taylor — it’s hard to stay mad at him.

Jason returns to the house to find Herc demolishing a load-bearing wall, and Billy crowing over a $1700 toilet with bidet feature. Jason hits the roof, and Billy gets mad — he doesn’t like anyone talking to him like he’s a moron. Jason gives him the to-do list to post on the wall, and Billy shoots a nail through his hand. Herc laughs, Jason leaves in disgust, and Billy yells for a pair of pliers.

Holding her two-year-old, Ali knocks on Tyra’s door, demanding to see Cash. She tells Tyra that Cash owes her $1600 in child support. J.D. leads the team to a stunning victory over Westby on Friday night, impressing everyone except Grandma, who cries in the stands. After the game, Riggins is just convincing J.D. to come out and party with the boys when Joe pulls him away to celebrate at Applebee’s.

Even though he doesn’t want to go, Lyla extracts a promise from Riggins to escort her to the school dance. Jason bumps into Taylor at the lumber yard, and tells him all about the plan to flip Buddy’s house. When Taylor looks doubtful, Jason claims it’s all going great, and invites Taylor to stop by.

At work, Tyra confesses all to Julie. She was stupid for thinking she could fall in love with Cash. When Cash shows up to try to explain, Tyra gives him his money back and sends him packing. Landry and Jimmy hold auditions to find a new bass player for the band. It’s all bad until cute and goofy freshman Devin shows up. When the guys learn that Devin can sing too, she’s immediately voted into the band.

Taylor stops by the house, which is a total mess. Jason is downhearted, thinking he may have made the biggest mistake of his life. He doesn’t want to be a deadbeat dad. Taylor tells Jason to calm down; he’s only 20, and definitely not a deadbeat. He’s made a plan and he’s executing it — he just has to give himself a chance.

Saracen shows up at Julie’s house to ask if she wants to go swimming at the lake. He never thought he would play pro, but he was hoping that football would help him pay for college. Now he’s sitting on the bench and it sucks. However, he did just experience the first Saturday morning in his entire high school career when he didn’t wake up kicking himself for mistakes he made on the field the night before.

At the dance, Tami congratulates Tyra for her awesome decorations. Tyra tells Tami that she broke up with Cash; Tami was right about him. While keeping an eye on Tyra, Landry works through some of his songs with Devin. One musician to another, Devin thinks all the songs are about one girl. Devin thinks the band could be really great, as long as Landry gets over his fixation with whoever this girl is.

Lyla and Riggins run into J.D., who’s dressed in a suit and tie. Even though Lyla balks and J.D. doesn’t drink, Riggins insists on leaving the dance in favor of getting a beer at a house party, promising memories and no regrets. Riggins drops J.D. next to the keg, where the upperclassmen quickly persuade him to have a drink.

Cash knocks on Tyra’s door to explain himself. He did hook up with Ali five years ago, and she became obsessed with him, so he left town. Now that he’s back, she’s insisting that her kid is his, which is impossible. Cash has no reason to be dishonest with Tyra. He promises to never lie, and she takes him back.

Riggins finds J.D. three sheets to the wind, playing air guitar for a cheering crowd. Riggins and Lyla carry J.D. out of the party, as he points out what cute kids they’ll have together. Riggins is the last American cool dude — he doesn’t listen to anyone’s dad. Meanwhile, Julie and Saracen barbecue hot dogs by the lake. When Julie suggests that it’s time to go, they fall to kissing, and she pushes Saracen to the ground.

Saracen drives Julie home at first light, and she successfully sneaks into her bedroom, still starry-eyed from the night before. At church, Tami notices Julie and Saracen’s looks during mass. Afterwards, Joe confronts Taylor, making J.D. confess to getting drunk last night and promising it will never happen again. Julie interrupts, claiming Gracie needs her father.

As the guys work on the house, Jason checks in with Erin, who has yet to reach her parents’ home, and has pulled over to rest. Jason misses her like crazy, and asks her to put baby Noah on the phone — he doesn’t want the baby to forget him. Jason sings his son a song as the guys look on incredulously.

Source: NBC

The Panthers are thoroughly confused with Taylor’s platoon strategy — switching out Saracen and J.D. running different offenses — during Friday night’s game. Team McNulty takes the opportunity to make two early scores, causing announcer Lannie Albright to mention that if the Panthers lose this game, they can kiss the season goodbye. When Dillon takes its third delay penalty due to confusion, a furious Taylor calls for a time-out.

Taylor gives J.D. and Saracen a pep talk. They have to stay calm and toe the line and their strategy will pay off. When McNulty scores again, Taylor puts J.D. in for the final 30 seconds of the game. Riggins makes first down on the five yard line, and Taylor puts Saracen back in the game to run the winning goal. The crowd erupts in cheers, but they’re all for J.D. and his amazing performance. Saracen leaves the field unnoticed.

Tami notices a small tattoo on Julie’s ankle. When Julie admits that it’s real, both Tami and Taylor hit the roof. Taylor wants to know if that’s how she’s spending her money and Tami is devastated that Julie has marred her natural beauty forever. Julie’s prepared for the onslaught — Tyra said her parents would be upset — and claims it’s too late for them to do anything about it now.

Jason rushes to clean the apartment he shares with Herc before Erin arrives with baby Noah. Jason wants to make plans to move in with Erin, and promises that he’s going to figure out a way to make more money so they can have a life together. Exhausted from extra waitressing shifts, new mother Erin wishes she could think about the long term.

Riggins overhears Buddy berating his real estate agent, Missy. Buddy needs to sell his old house right now, and is willing to dramatically reduce its price. Buddy gives Missy a sales strategy: tell everyone that when all the scared rats are leaving the sinking market, the real entrepreneurs step in.

Riggins quietly watches TV while Street and Herc brainstorm a way to make some cash. Invoking Buddy’s words, Riggins proposes they buy Buddy’s house and flip it. Street and Herc don’t have enough money for a down payment on their own. Claiming he and Billy have copper wire money, Riggins insists they can all go in together — as long as Jason can sell Billy on the idea.

The bullpen is a mess as all the coaches discuss strategy. Taylor wants to keep running the platoon and add more plays, but McGill puts his foot down. The team’s strength isn’t more plays, it’s J.D. Saracen is a tough kid and deserves their respect, but it’s time he knew the truth. Later that night, Taylor knocks on Saracen’s door to tell him he’s QB2 as of Friday. Shelby drives up with Grandma, effectively quashing any further dialogue. Shelby knows something’s wrong, but Saracen stays mum.

Tyra meets with Tami in her office. Tami wants to know what’s going on — Tyra has been skipping school and screwing up her grades. Tyra admits that she has a boyfriend, but Tami’s aware that Cash is no boy. If their relationship is what Tami thinks it is, it’s a one-way ticket to nowhere. Tyra doesn’t think it’s any of Tami’s business, but Tami knows it is — she cares about Tyra and doesn’t like what she sees.

Jason does his homework, and gives Billy the hard sell on the plan to flip Buddy’s house. Billy does need money for his new life with Mindy but he’s unsure. Riggins closes the deal, invoking Buddy’s rats in a sinking market strategy. Delighted, Jason tells Billy and Riggins to meet them at the bank tomorrow with a check for the down payment. Billy and Riggins look at each other — now they have to sell the copper wire.

Cash meets Tyra, who’s upset over a C on her history test. For Cash, a C would mean celebration. Tyra points out that he’s a cowboy and she’s trying to get into college. Cash pops another pain pill for his broken shoulder, earning a sympathetic kiss from Tyra. That night, Tami tells Taylor she feels old and out of control. First Julie’s tattoo, now Tyra is going off the deep end. Cash is an old-fashioned bad influence, and that’s a slippery slope, which Tami knows from experience.

Jason stops by Erin’s to soothe cranky Noah so she can sleep. He tries to share his good news, but Erin falls asleep, so he tells the baby instead. Meanwhile, Billy sets up a meet in the middle of nowhere to sell the copper wire. Riggins is disgusted to see Billy’s crazy friend Guy. Buyer Dan-O lowballs Billy, but Riggins wants to get the deal done. When Guy insists on a deep cut, then insults Mindy, Billy jumps him. Riggins pulls Billy into the truck and they drive off as Guy shoots after them.

Billy and Riggins are late to the bank meeting, embarrassing Jason and Herc. When the Riggins brothers finally show up, Jason admits he played the crippled football player card and got the loan — they just need a check by tomorrow. Riggins admits that they had a hiccup. When he said they had copper wire money, he meant they had copper wire. Herc ends a potential fight, saying he might know a guy to buy the wire.

Saracen finds Shelby on the curb outside his house, waiting for her radiator to cool off. Shelby wants to run something by Saracen: she can rent a chair at the local beauty salon and stick around until he graduates. Saracen tells her to do whatever she wants and goes inside. Herc’s friend offers the guys twice what Dan-O would have paid for the wire, cash. The deal is done, just as Lyla walks in, wondering what’s going on.

Cash pulls Tyra out of class for a ride in the country to see a newborn foal, touching Tyra’s heart. Tami and Taylor ask Julie to talk about her tattoo. What was she thinking and why didn’t she discuss it with them? Julie knew they would say no, and the tattoo doesn’t mean anything — and it’s her ankle. Insisting that until Julie hits 18, it’s her ankle, Tami has arranged for them to drive to San Antonio to have the tattoo removed.

Buddy is delighted when Missy brings him papers to sign to sell his house — until he sees the names on the dotted line. The guys are celebrating the house purchase when Missy calls Jason to inform him that Buddy refuses to sell his house to that “clown car full of idiots.” Tyra stops by Tami’s office to insist she’s wrong about Cash. He’s a good guy and Tyra has her priorities straight. As Tyra turns to leave, Tami spots a tattoo running down her spine, and immediately thinks of Julie.

Buddy tells Jason it’s not about him; it’s about Riggins, who already has his daughter. Refusing to take no for an answer, Jason is determined to close the deal, so he can provide for Noah and win Erin’s heart. He enchants Buddy, running him through one of his greatest football plays — that’s the guy Buddy is selling the house to.

Alone in the locker room, Saracen throws helmets in frustration and despair when Taylor steps in. Saracen did everything Taylor told him to do, including winning State — is it all because J.D. is better than him? Taylor fumbles, claiming his job is to win games, so right now it’s J.D. Saracen wants to quit, but Taylor won’t let him. Saracen agrees to come to practice and sit on the bench, but he’ll hate it, and Taylor will, too.

Finally in possession of Buddy’s house, Herc and Billy are arguing about décor, when Erin stops by on Jason’s request. Excited, Jason shares his plan to flip the house to earn their family nest egg, but Erin shakes her head no. She’s going to move back east to her family. Her life is too hard, no matter what Jason has planned. As Erin drives off, Jason resolves that his plan is still going to work, refusing to lose faith.

While driving to San Antonio with Julie, Tami pulls the car off the road for a talk. Tami was a wild child in high school and almost dropped out. Amazed, Julie asks what happened. Tami was lucky enough to find Taylor, but she knows all about the slippery slope, and the tattoo has her worried. Julie promises she’s not going down that road. Tami allows Julie to keep her tattoo, guaranteeing she’ll wind up paying to take it off herself when she’s 30.

Saracen returns home to find Grandma berating Shelby. When Grandma huffs out, Shelby asks if she can come to see Saracen play. He explains that now isn’t the best time — he stepped up when the team needed him and did his best, but it wasn’t good enough. Acknowledging his great job, Shelby wonders if Saracen ever considered taking a break. What are they gonna do — shoot him for quitting the team? Saracen shares a smile with Shelby, then grimaces through practice, sitting on the bench.

Source: NBC

Riggins, Lyla, Mindy, Billy, Tyra and Landry are having a good ole time at the rodeo. Landry offers the ladies cotton candy, but doesn’t partake, since he’s having his wisdom teeth extracted tomorrow. Tyra offers to come over and play nurse. Billy focuses everyone’s attention on his buddy Cash, a hot cowboy, who wins the bronco riding competition and tips his hat to a starry-eyed Tyra.

After the rodeo, the gang retires to a honky tonk bar, to celebrate Cash’s $10,000 prize. With Landry home in bed preparing for dental surgery, Cash moves in. Billy never mentioned Mindy’s little sister turned into a goddess. Cash admits that he’s planning on staying in Dillon for a while, and asks Tyra if she’s dating Landry. She’s not, so they proceed to dance the night away

Taylor’s contact Mitch Stallman calls to push Smash’s A&M walk-on 24 hours; he’ll have a better chance with Coach Helling on a Sunday. Smash wants to know more about Stallman, but Taylor tells him to focus on his game. Grandma pouts. She doesn’t want the oatmeal Saracen made for breakfast, but he doesn’t have time to make her anything else. When an interview with J.D. appears on TV, Saracen shuts it off on the way out the door. Grandma throws away her oatmeal.

Tami finds Buddy on the football field with surveyors, planning for his JumboTron. Tami kicks him off the field, reminding that they have a meeting to discuss the JumboTron with Superintendent Dunley. Buddy claims he just wants to be ready when the Boosters win; he’s already explained himself to Dunley, who’s an old golf buddy.

High as a kite after surgery, Landry immediately calls Tyra. He realizes she’s not his girlfriend anymore, but he loves her. Landry’s mom takes his phone — he’ll thank her later. Taylor assembles his coaches. It’s a bye week, so they’ll start working the spread offense. When Crowley asks if that means they’re going to build around J.D., McGill kicks all the coaches out of the room to ask the same question. Taylor admits he doesn’t know yet.

In town on business, Shelby surprises Saracen at school, offering a ride home. She’s going to be in town for a bit, is there anything she can do to help him out? Saracen admits he needs to study for a big midterm; can Shelby take Grandma to the doctor tomorrow? Meanwhile, a crawfish party gets underway at the Collette house. Sexy Cash charms Tyra — not only does he bust broncs, he cooks and speaks French.

Mitch and Saracen stop by Landry’s on the way to work to google Stallman on Landry’s computer. Discovering that Stallman’s a front office man, Smash fears he’ll work at Alamo Freeze forever, but Saracen reminds him to trust Taylor. Eagerly awaiting Tyra, Landry kicks them out and picks up the phone. Tyra blows off his call in favor of spending the evening with Cash.

Tami rants during a morning power walk with her new best friend, Katie McCoy. How can Tami compete with the JumboTron boys club? Katie reminds her that no one likes an angry woman, and anger is a waste of time — why not find out where Dunley has coffee and chat him up? Tami likes this idea, even if it makes her nervous.

Landry waits for Tyra at her locker — what happened last night? Mortified, Tyra apologizes, claiming that her aunt was sick, and she can’t talk because she has a project due in 45 minutes. After school, Taylor changes up practice with a little seven on seven, with Saracen and J.D. rotating snaps. They’re well matched until Saracen’s long pass falls just short of its mark.

Grandma balks when Shelby arrives to take her to the doctor. She doesn’t like change, and she doesn’t like Shelby. Saracen pleads with Grandma to help him out, he has to study. Grandma huffs to the car, reminding Shelby that she’s not family. Tami tells Taylor about Julie’s plan to stalk Dunley. It’s not her nature, but maybe she needs to schmooze like everyone else. Taylor pulls into a bar — he needs some scotch.

Taylor agonizes over a drink: J.D. has an amazing arm, but could he take the pressure of QB1? And benching Saracen mid-season of his senior year would kill him. Tami points out that Saracen is like family, but Taylor knows he can’t make a decision based on that. Tami laughs; her husband is a courageous and sensitive molder of men, and she finds that admirable and sexy.

Taylor interrupts J.D.’s early morning practice to hammer him with questions on the playbook. When Taylor asks what he does when not playing football, J.D. admits to spending most of his time practicing and working out. Taylor advises him to bulk up with some chicken fried steak; J.D.’s dad won’t let him eat fried foods.

Tami pretends to bump into Dunley at his local diner. He’s about to rush off to a meeting, but Tami pushes into his booth, attempting to deliver her agenda in a casual context. Dunley accuses Tammy of being angry. He admits the school needs more teachers and supplies, but the Boosters gave their money for a JumboTron.

Saracen tells Landry about Shelby over lunch, and is saved from opening up when Julie interrupts. Landry spies Tyra walking with Cash and confronts her — Tyra lied about her aunt being sick! Tyra claims that she didn’t want to hurt Landry; he’s her best friend. A fight erupts, and Landry forces Tyra to choose Cash over him.

Julie and Saracen are studying when Shelby stops by with groceries and some baby pictures of Saracen. Grandma huffs out. Upset, Saracen tells Shelby that she can’t act as if everything’s normal. There was a time when he needed her help, but now he doesn’t. Humbled, Shelby leaves.

Tami cries, feeling defeated. She should never have picked the JumboTron fight. Taylor probably thought it was a bad idea from the start. Taylor insists that it’s obvious Tami is right. And it doesn’t matter if she loses; what matters is that she’s stood up for she believes is right — that’s a win. Saracen apologizes to Grandma for bringing Shelby into their lives. Grandma admits that Saracen’s father was difficult. Maybe she should have helped Shelby more than she did.

Saracen calls Shelby. He realizes she must have left because his dad was a jerk. Shelby refuses to say anything bad about Saracen’s dad, explaining that she was 17 when she got pregnant, and had only known him a few months. She’ll never forgive herself for leaving Saracen, and doesn’t expect his forgiveness. Shelby felt bad when she learned that Saracen was pretty much on his own, and just wants to lend a hand.

After hours of waiting, Stallman tells Taylor that they’ll have to reschedule Smash’s walk-on. Taylor drags Smash onto the field to confront Coach Helling with a ballsy sell. Helling grudgingly lets Smash into the practice. Taylor tells Smash to go all the way, and he does, scoring a touchdown. Impressed, Helling tells Taylor not to break open the bubbly just yet — he’ll call.

Taylor calls J.D. and Saracen into his office to announce that they’re going to get unorthodox next Friday night. Saracen will run the I, alternating with J.D. running the spread. It’s not going to work if the other team knows what’s happening so the boys will have to ride herd over their own. Tyra visits Landry to announce that she’s not giving up her best friend without a fight. Landry asks her to please leave.

Dunley saves the last introduction at the JumboTron’s groundbreaking ceremony for Tami. In her speech, Tami puts the screws to Buddy, thanking him for hosting the PTA’s silent auction at the dealership — a deal he was unaware he made.Smash gets a phone call from A&M — he’s in college and on the team, starting tomorrow!

On the way out of town, Smash stops by Taylor’s house to deliver the good news. Emotional but stoic, Taylor automatically starts spewing advice. Smash interrupts to thank Taylor for everything — he never could have done it without him. Later that night, Riggins, Landry and Saracen bid Smash farewell on A&M’s field with a scrimmage and a 12-pack.

Source: NBC