The Boys of Riverside

A compelling read. 12/27/25 dwm

My sister sent me this book several months ago. It languished on a shelf in the home office until the day after Christmas, which turned out to be a perfect time to read it.

Thomas Fuller wrote the book after doing a story for the New York Times on an unlikely team that was turning heads as it advanced through the California High School 8-man football playoffs. 

It was a change-of-pace for the writer who had reported from more than 40 countries on wars, domestic wildfires, and the pandemic. It turned out to be more than a one-off story as the story became a book chronicling two years of the California School for the Deaf in Riverside.

It's a quick read at 240 pages, which dives into the make-up of the team and the shared bond of being deaf.

For this team and their coaches, deafness wasn't a problem, it was an advantage according to the author.

"This could have been a meeting of any football team in America, coaches and players sitting on plastic folding chairs in a colorless classroom discussing their hopes for the season. But there was an important difference for the Cubs, a kind of inescapable togetherness. Teenagers, boys in particular, are known for their adolescent grunt years, for eyes-cast-down, monosyllabic conversations. This was rarely the case in Cubs meetings. Communicating in sign language required unbroken eye contact; it demanded that a listener watch not only the hands but also the slightest nuances in facial expressions. When (coach) Keith Adams reminded his players, as he did so often, that the team would succeed only if everyone did their job, all eyes were on him. Most days, Adams did not need to ask for his player's attention: it was ingrained in Deaf Culture. The boys were, by necessity, locked in." (The Boys of Riverside, page 10)

There are plenty of disadvantages and discrimination faced by deaf people, and the writer shares those stories, too.

The team plays 8-man football, which is something I first heard about in South Dakota where schools with small enrollments that couldn't field a team with 11 players on offense and defense, so the game is played with three less players on a shorter, 80-yard field, it's a faster and usually higher-scoring game of football. 

Students came to the California School for the Deaf at Riverside often because it was their last, best chance after difficulties taking the same classes as hearing students. 

Deafness is a condition, not a disability, and the football field is just one place that's shown.

What I learned, is that it's a good book and a fun read, no matter the season, follow the link for more information.