Ryan Dunne, a nice high-school kid, who works hard mowing lawns for dad Sean's firm, is caught between loyalty to Sir, who cynically believes neither of his sons will even climb the social ladder, and big brother Mike, who scolds Ryan's lack of ambition to go all the way to be recruiter for for a baseball college scholarship, which Mike had to abandon due to a wound. To complicate matters, he falls in love with a snob client's daughter.

Football coach Harold Jones befriends Radio, a mentally-challenged man who becomes a student at T.L. Hanna High School in Anderson, South Carolina. Their friendship extends over several decades, where Radio transforms from a shy, tormented man into an inspiration to his community.