In 1927, Pat McClellan, having just completed finishing school, arrives at Tait College to begin her studies and pledge at the Phi Gamma Gamma sorority. Pat's arrival causes quite a stir on campus, and she exploits the attention by making a showy display of her newly acquired sophistication. She wins the immediate adoration of the players on the school football team, but Connie Lane, one of her fellow sorority sisters, sees through her French-speaking pretensions and is disgusted by her vanity. Connie, who works part-time at the university library, disapproves of the slinky red dress that Pat intends to wear to the upcoming sorority party and tells her that the dress is too "extreme and obvious." Pat, however, ignores Connie's advice, and makes a splashy entrance at the party, attracting the notice of all the male students, including Tommy Marlowe, the captain of the football team. Pat deliberately ignores Tommy, and instead pursues Peter Van Dyne, III, simply because he comes from a well-to-do family. Pat's rejection makes Tommy want her all the more, and he vows to learn French to be able to converse with her in her preferred language. Connie is secretly in love with Tommy, and though she is disappointed in his determination to attract Pat, she consents to tutor him in French. Tommy learns how to speak French well enough to ask Pat to the prom in French, but he is crushed when Pat turns down his invitation. When Babe Doolittle, Connie's roommate, learns of the rejection, she decides, for the sake of the football team, to intervene and prevent Tommy from becoming depressed. As part of her plan, Babe tries to interest Pat in Tommy by telling her that Tommy is the heir to his family's pickle fortunes. Pat's interest in Tommy is suddenly piqued, but Tommy, meanwhile, has asked Connie to the prom. Connie is overjoyed that Tommy has asked her to be his date, but her excitement is dashed in an instant when Tommy tells her he is going with Pat. As Tommy's grades begin to slip, Coach Johnson grows increasingly concerned that Tommy will not have the high marks he needs to play in the big game against Colton University. With Tommy's football-playing future at stake, Johnson and others implore Connie to rescue Tommy and coach him for a re-examination in his French class. Connie reluctantly agrees to the arrangement, and, to her astonishment, Tommy makes romantic overtures to her during their first lesson. After admitting to Connie that his interest in Pat was a mistake, Tommy tries to get out of his promise to announce his engagement to Pat by deliberately failing the French test and forcing his own suspension from the big football game. Despite his attempts to stay out of the game and avoid his commitment to Pat, Tommy is forced to play. As a result, Tommy plays poorly and the team suffers greatly. During the game, Connie gets an idea to save the team from defeat by telling Pat that Tommy has suddenly become penniless. Connie's plan works, and when Tommy learns that Pat has left him, he delivers a victory for the team and looks forward to an unimpeded romance with Connie.