Buckeye Dreams chronicles the remarkable rise of a high school player who was told he was too short and too slow to play at a major college, but whose determination and perseverance led him to eventually play a key role on Ohio State's 2007 Big Ten championship team, a team that played for a national title. The book profiles Whaley's resilient family and his hometown of Ironton, Ohio, an economically depressed but prideful community hungry for one of their own to succeed. Despite being an all-state player for Ironton High School, Whaley was forced to start at the bottom rung at Ohio State, walking onto the team and paying his own way. He labored for years with little reward, before his hard work paid off first with a scholarship and then with playing time. The book details the highs and lows Whaley experienced, from the humiliation of being left out of the team photo in 2003 to his triumphant moment on the field at Michigan Stadium last November.