Neely Crenshaw, number 19, was Messina’s all-American quarterback. He was on his way to a successful football career when a knee injury in college put him out of the game for good, and suddenly “[n]umber 19 was Neely Crenshaw in another life” (4). Ever since, Neely has been unable to shake his past: both the benefits of being the town hero, and the abuse from Rake he endured to get there. When he reluctantly returns to Messina, he finds himself clinging to the life he knew in high school more than ever before. His left knee, “twice the size of his right” (10) which never fully recovered and causes him to limp, is a metaphor for the ever-present memories from high school. While he will never be able to fully move past the pain they both bring, he does eventually learn to move forward.

When Neely was in high school, he adored the attention he gained as an athlete. Now, “He [doesn’t] want to be seen” and avoids eye contact with the locals when he can (8). He sees places where people worship Rake all over the town of Messina and is all too aware that “[n]othing had changed” (43) in the time since he’s been home.