Product Description
The ultimate fan's guide to America's most popular sport

Since the last edition of Football For Dummies, new stadiums have been built, new stars have ascended, and records have been broken. This new edition has been revised to reflect today's game, giving football fans up-to-the-minute information on all the rules and regulations, positions, plays, and penalties. Featuring coverage of the newest stadium technologies, revised greatest players and legends, and pro-football must-do experiences, it also includes expert advice on training and gearing up for those who play the game. Fans will discover the best ways to enjoy football-at home or at the stadium.Amazon.com Review
At last, the Dummies series is tackling football. FormerRaider all-pro defensive end and current Fox TV analyst Howie Longcalls the signals, and if he doesn't always go deep--he's got a lot ofground to cover--at least he connects. With all its X's and O's,football is a complicated sport, and Long works hard to smooth theway: "Once you break through that initial fear of being overwhelmed byfootball and what you don't understand," he counsels, "I knoweverything else about the game, like dominoes, will fall into place."In his role as guide, Long plays those dominoes, from peewees to thepros to the fantasy leagues, explaining positions, analyzing offensesand defenses, and detailing strategies. As with all Dummies guides,the fun part is the "Part of Tens," the series of top-10 lists thatdig in for the final chapter. He scores big with his inclusions ofJohn Hannah and Hugh McElhenny among the greatest offensive playersever, but should be penalized for overemphasizing tight ends andforgetting the electricity that wide receivers bring to thegame. This, of course, reflects a defensive end's natural bias; sincethey muck it up more with the hulkier tight ends, they simply let thespeedballs fly by. --Jeff Silverman ... Read more

Customer Reviews (54)

Impressive
Haven't yet read through the whole thing, but its a good book. My friends have already borrowed it, and it provides with enough general info with certain details that you feel like you know football to a certain level.Would definitely recommend.

Did this have an editor?
This book is so badly written, I wonder if it was even proof-read before it went to print.The section on safeties starts out talking about impetus - a pretty technical topic - before it even describes what a safety is.And most of that section (as well as so many, many other sections) is either outright wrong, technically correct while missing the point, or written so confusingly as to be misleading or useless.Reading the NFL rulebook is actually clearer.And that is just one section.The section on passes has a diagram with the corner route listed, but the corner route is never discussed in the text.And there is no overview of the game; if it mentions that each play has 22 players, 11 on the defense and 11 on the offense, it is only in the section describing penalties.If this were a book intended for people who wanted to learn about football and didn't know anything about it, they would end up almost as confused as they started.

Much of the book is actually geared towards people who are learning more about NFL, college, and even high school football with an eye toward the future.Coaching and playing tips are given throughout the book.Since I don't play football, I can't judge the value of advice given to a quarterback by a former defensive end. And since I was looking for a guide to decode the jargon on tv while I watched the game, all of this is useless to me.Every section that I needed was there, but they were written so badly that even if I could trust that it was correct (and you can't), I wouldn't be able to figure out what it was saying.

Howie Long is a Jerk
I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone. It amazes me that Howie Long, who played in the NFL, knows so little about football.
It just goes to show you how a dunderhead like Howie Long who did a lot of steroids can go all the way to the top of his field without actually knowing anything. This book is trash. Football for dummies is a good title however, if you read this, you will be a dummy at football. Keep selling trucks Howie and keep your job on FOX because you can't write books, even if they're about football!

Football For Dummies
I purchased this item as a tool to help my son-inlaw learn the game of american football.Though he has questions for me that the book did not cover (rescent NFL rules changes), it is a great tool for someone wanting to learn football.

My guilty secret
I love this book.Growing up, I had no brothers and no one ever explained football to me.I could watch the game and have no idea what was going on.Now, I am a fervent Vikings fan, sitting glued to the TV with my "Football for Dummies" book.It is so much more fun towatch the game when you can follow it. My girl friends think I am some kind of football guru.And I am, with the help of my little secret-I cheat, with "Football for Dummies." ... Read more

Product Description
Professional football today is an $8 billion sports entertainment industry and the most popular spectator sport in America, with designs on expansion across the globe. In this astute field-level view of the National Football League since 1960, Michael Oriard looks closely at the development of the sport and at the image of the NFL and its unique place in American life. New to the paperback edition is Oriard's analysis of the offseason labor negotiations and their potential effects on the future of the sport, and his account of how the NFL is dealing with the latest research on concussions and head injuries. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Brooke, OSU Comp Student 2010
I read Brand NFL for a paper I had to write in my Comp 2 class at Oklahoma State University. I read this book becasue Marketing in the NFL is what I am wanting to go into. This boook was very interesting when it came to what the NFL was back in the old days tho what it is today. The money aspect of the book and how much money the professional teams make are interesting and when Oriard goes into detail different players and he talks about how these specific players are very marketable, I think that is what we look at today when watching the NFL. We look at different players and not only how they play but if they are popular or not. This book was a great read and very interesting.

A rather dry history of the NFL
The author is a college professor and the book reads like a term paper. He quotes other sources to the point where there are so many footnotes is disrupts the reading. And even though he is a former player he gives precious little info about his personal experience and opinions. The colorful characters and mud-splattering drama you associate with the NFL are mostly absent. A great case study and historical text if that's what you want. But not entertaining.

very solid, with an exception
Michael Oriard explores an area relatively uncovered in the vast flow of information about football. And that is the establishment of the NFL as a business, especially a media and entertainment enterprise instead of a simple sport played by romanticized warriors.

Oriard is first-rate on the history of the game and its development from a minor sport to the top tier starting in the late 1950s and 1960s. He nicely balanced football and its personalities, such as Lombardi, with the awakening of football as a business, primarily under the timely leadership of Pete Rozelle. People who remember the 1960s should enjoy the history, and young fans could find much to learn. The author is informative and concise.

He then moves into the next wave, with Joe Namath as one of the anchors, with his free spirit and large contract as indicators that, in retrospect, were seminal that seem almost quaint by now. Wow, long hair and white shoes! Here again, the personalities and the business evolved as parallel trends, influencing each other. Pete Rozelle began to lose his grip and the stakes got too high as football became America's #1 sport and the media coverage meant problems became public. Financial visionaries such as Jerry Jones of Dallas were about to open another whole dimension.

Oriard writes extensively about the beginning of the labor movement within football, all the way to the current relative peace. This is possibly both one of the strongest and weakest parts of the book. The strength is that the topic is relatively unfamiliar and normally underestimated in its importance, plus Oriard the ex-player has that insider's perspective. The weakness may be that it may be more than many fans wanted to know, and Oriard certainly is not impartial. Even so, the one-sided nature of owner-player relationship in the old days is almost appalling to read now. Younger fans may also be shocked to hear how little revenue football had and how little players made.

Oriand tackles one of the third rails of sports, that of why black athletes dominate, black cultural issues as they relate to football, and both subtle and obvious racism. He makes some reasonable observations, while also hemming and hawing around specifics where you cannot really win. The "exception" in my title is that he really should have stayed away from intelligence, other than the obvious history of blacks being kept from so-called skill positions that allegedly needed mental skills beyond their capacity. Wading into general intelligence controversies served no purpose, and Oriand misrepresented the famous "Bell Curve" book anyway. In this case, stick to your knitting.

Oriand closed with the transition from Paul Tagliabue to Roger Goodell as the new commissioner, naturally a time to re-assess the state of the business. To Oriand, Goodell fits football's continued growth in complexity that demands far more than Pete Rozelle the PR man. Oriand is very optimistic about football's future, yet he doesn't shy from some of the risks.

That attitude helps the general tone and credibility of the book. A breathless "homer" would have been uninteresting. A negative beat-down would have been unrealistic and pointless. As he said near the end, "Is the NFL become primarily a media company, or, is it still, above all, a national *football* league? It is both, of course, but the balance has been shifting, and how the commissioner will manage that balance over the coming years will be the story of the post-new NFL, whatever it will be called."

I can't argue with that. What I hope Oriand and Goodell realize is that excessive commercialization is itself a major risk. Major sporting events already are flirting with unwatchability with all the commercials and side shows. It's one area that could have gotten a bit more attention here. Why exactly is it that people like me watch less football than before, why don't I want to pay for the NFL Network, and why don't I like being shaken down at every opportunity by Dan Snyder? ... Read more

Product Description
Make sure to check out (www.tuttlerules.com). davidgreene39@gmail.com is where I can be reached. My next book, "So You Think You Can Gamble, on Sports"(which will be pertaining to the "Big-3" of sports gambling); is now available. These booklets, are just that; in the fact that they will only be between 90 to 115 pages in length, always. Hence the low price, even though there's plenty of wording (12,104 in this booklet), and it certainly packs a punch! Although, this book was written with all football bettor's in mind; its teachings are a bit advanced for the Beginner/Novice. The Avid/Advanced football bettor, will absolutely LOVE IT!! The "systems" discussed in this book are absolutely years ahead of their time! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (10)

I wish I could give 0 stars
I can't believe I was stupid enough to unwittingly buy a book written under one of Joseph Tuttle's pseudonyms.They're usually easy to spot, but obviously he's doing a much better job of disguising all of the earlier good reviews that were written by himself and accomplices.

The only good thing about this book is that it's ridiculously short and printed in a gigantic font.The little actual content consists of a few theories and formulas that range from laughably simplistic or meaningless, to outright mathmatically ignorant.And the incessant pimping of a couple of websites gets really tiresome.

One can only hope that he is following his own gambling advice.I'd much prefer knowing that the proceeds from this book are in a bookie's pockets, rather than the author's.

Too Basic
Not sure how people gave this 5 stars, but the book is too basic to learn new things. You will only learn new things if you have no idea what football is. It's short and his large writing. A waste of my time.

I'm dumber after reading this
This book is full of errors showing a complete lack of understanding of sports betting in general.

For example, on page 23, the author compares a player's advantage in betting an NFL team at -5.5 when the fair line is -6, and concludes this yields a 1 % advantage. A 6 point-favorite wins by exactly 6 about 4.5%, which translates into a 4.5% advantage over a bet at -6.

On page 35, in explaining how the fair odds on a 3-team parlay are calculated, he explains "quite simple. 3 x 3 = 9 - 1 ... equals 8 to 1 odds. This is so bad, it is laughable that it is published. This mistake is repeated on page 48 "5 team parlays should pay 5 x 5 = 25-1, or 24:1".

Most of the advice in this book is plain awful as well. He recommends hedging often to prevent bad beats. As far as money management, he advocates keeping about half your money at your main book, and suggests Bodoglife. Any decent pro has money spread out between 5-50 books. Bodog deals dual lines, and won't take a large bet from anyone with a brain. No mention is made of either Pinnacle or Matchbook, which are mandatory outs for pros. He also suggests that your average wager size should increase to 10% or more of your bankroll once you have "gotten ahead at least $4000".

Every few pages contains more unsupported conclusions and horrendous advice. Save yourself time and money on this one - there is nothing redeeming in it.

outdated
this book is already outdated.He mentions a website in here that he relies on a lot.The website does not exist anymore.He also provides his email address, but he doesn't respond to emails.So much of this book relies on the website that he refrences so this book is not worth it.Don't buy it, it's not even well written.It's like John Madden wrote it.He gives some good advice on bankroll but overall, this book is not worth the price.

83 pages, thats it
This short book is like reading a magazine article.Not too much in there, just kind of thrown together.How do people make 83 page books?
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Product Description
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Product Description

It’s fun to watch a high-flying slam dunk, a perfect spiral thrown for a touchdown, or a batter fooled by a hard-breaking curveball. But how are athletes able to perform these moves? From the laws of physics on a skateboard to the effects of weather on a ball, the Science of Sports books explore all the science behind these amazing plays.

... Read more

Product Description
Rocky Fletcher is being stretched to his limit. Until recently, he'd only played wide receiver for the Pythons. Now his coaches want him to learn the safety position, too - a position that opened up when Bobby, Rocky's best friend, broke his leg. Even though he believes he is to blame for Bobby's injury, Rocky eagerly takes on the challenge of becoming a two-way player. After all, the only other player available is Jared, a sullen boy who switched from soccer to football this season. Yet as time goes on, it's Jared who excels at the position because, thanks to Bobby, Rocky keeps missing practices! What's going on between Rocky and Bobby-and why is Jared on the team when he clearly dislikes football so much? ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Matt Christopher Books turned my Son into a Reader
My son was a typical 8 year old boy "I hate to read" - but he loves football and Matt Christopher books about Football have turned him into a reader.These are a little bit challenging for a 8 year old who is not a strong reader so he has mostly been reading out-load to me so I can help when he gets stuck...but I have seen huge improvement over the past months.

The Review of an Eleven Year Old
I thought that this was a very good book. It teaches young kids honesty and the meaning of freidship without it seeming like it. I think it is a great book for all those 10-14 year olds out there.

Very Good Book
I bought two copies of this book to read with my 11 y/o 5th grade son, to encourage him to read more and to check his comprehension.We both enjoyed the book.It was exciting enough to hold his attention with enough accurate details to allow me to check and also improve his comprehension.We highly recommend Matt Christopher books for young men. ... Read more

Product Description

Whether you’re a parent new to coaching or an experienced youth coach, Coaching Youth Football is your handbook for a successful season. Through the expertise of former NFL coach and current AYF president Joe Galat and American Youth Football, you’ll gain field-tested tips on running your team, communicating with and handling players, providing basic first aid, planning and conducting practices, drawing up plays, and keeping it all fun.

Product Description

You volunteered to coach the football team, but are you ready? How will you teach the fundamental skills, run effective practices, and harness the energy of your young team? Fear not: Survival Guide for Coaching Youth Football has the answers.

Customer Reviews (2)

Great resource for coaches!
This book is an excellent resource for both beginner and veteran coaches. It is accessible and applicable to many different situations and is a great resource for all youth football coaches.

Helpful (and realistic) advice for first time coaches!
As a longtime youth football coach, I invariably get a call from someone every July who has suddenly found themselves in the daunting position of coaching a team for the first time. Be it a willing parent or an enthused college kid, I've always done my best to give a little advice and to recommend a decent book. This year I've been pleased to find this new book by Dougherty and Castel on the market. It's a great resource for new coaches of young teams from pee wees to lightweights (ages 6-12).

These authors do a great job of relaying the nuts and bolts of what a new coach needs in a lighthearted tone without a lot of extra stuff that first-timers really don't need to manage that first season. This book will get readers through with realistic advice, plays and drills for young kids.

Rookie coaches seeking a more comprehensive book which addresses outside issues (like fundraising) and offers more breadth for older youth players (ages 8-14) will find a great resource in Coaching Youth Football - 5th Edition (Coaching Youth Sports) by Joe Galat, the President of American Youth Football. Both books are top notch depending on which age group you're coaching. ... Read more

Product Description
More than two million people a week rush to SI.com to read Peter King's column, Monday Morning Quarterback. There they find a potent mix of analysis, opinion, humor and inside-the-NFL locker- room information delivered as no one else can. In this book, King, the award-winning Sports Illustrated pro football writer, brings the same blend of wit and wisdom, ranging from his famous "10 Things I Think I Think" to his Top 100 player rankings; from the football clichés he hates to the coaching hires he loves; from Brett Favre's golf game to Peyton Manning's comedic skills. And all freshly flavored with King's inimitable observations on the best hotels, the worst airports, the greatest traditions-and coffee, coffee, coffee. There is no journalist better connected to the NFL's players, coaches, general managers and owners, and no writer renders the inside information as entertainingly as Peter King.
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Customer Reviews (17)

Funny, Fast Paced, Moving
This book is a collection of on line articles Sports Illustrated author Peter King wrote over the years. He has access to football players, coaches, staff and has a great touch in telling these stories.

This is not at all about the strategy of football or the business side. It's the people side, the smack talk, the respect players have for each other, the things coaches say when their guard is down. Peter even takes you into his personal life (he was told to include these in his articles) and I found his ability to tell the story of his daughter's championship softball game was amazing and really, really touching.

If you love football and want to see the insider's view, this is a great read. It's fast paced, funny - best read on an airplane, so everyone around you can wonder what in the world is so funny.

Love the MMQB column, but...
King's weekly column by the same name is a must-read throughout the year, but his book felt more like filler than an essential read. It includes some of his favorite MMQB stories through the years, along with features that mirror some of his usual column sections and a few lists of their own. King is working on an updated paperback version of the book, and at this point if you're interested in the book it's worth waiting. The book has some interesting tidbits and opinions, but it's not an essential part of the NFL fan's bookshelf.

Entertaining Revisit of Peter King's MMQ Columns
"Sports Illustrated Monday Morning Quarterback: A fully caffeinated guide to everything you need to know about the NFL", by sports-journalist and television analyst Peter King, is basically a compilation of some of his columns from his popular "Monday Morning Quarterback" column on Sports Illustrated's web site, along with some new filler, such as his list of the 100 greatest players of all time.

If you've never read Mr King, as a sportswriter he typically treads the middle ground between the purely cerebral analysts and the unabashed fan-boys, leaning slightly toward the fan side of the equation.He enjoys wide access to players, coaches, general managers, and team owners, in part because he's very good at what he does, in part because he typically doesn't bash anyone unless they've truly well earned it, and in part because he's enthusiastic about what he does and I think it shows.His columns, while primarily about professional football, tend to regularly wander over into other topics that are of interest to him, such as good coffee, travel, baseball, and (until they graduated from college) his daughters' sports careers.Although some people may disagree, I find this digression from strictly writing on football to be entertaining, and after you follow Mr King's writing for awhile, it almost seems like you're reading a letter from a good friend or relative letting you know what he's been up to.

You don't have to be familiar with Mr. King's work to enjoy the columns in this book.Because of the wide access he has with the teams and players, he's able to give you behind-the-curtain views of many big stories, such a discussion with former Giants GM Ernie Accorsi on the drafting of Eli Manning.Mr. King writes with wit, style, humor, and warmth, so the book is a very easy and entertaining read.I suspect that the book will primarily be bought by fans of the column, but as I mentioned above, it can be enjoyed by all.

Nice set of short stories
This is a collection of Peter's short (1-2 page) articles he wrote for MMQB.I had never read many of these, so it was interesting to see the progression of his work through the years.Each page also has a side blurb unrelated to the content on the page.The side blurb is a quick comment from Peter from other MMQB pieces.It got to be a little overwhelming with the story and then having to remember to read each side blurb, but everything was interesting and great material so it was worth it.

Peter King Spouts Off About the National Football League
I have always considered Peter King to be a bit of a blowhard and this book mostly confirms my opinion.Monday Morning Quarterback is a compendium of King's writings and articles about the National Football League in the print and online versions of Sports Illustrated.As a result it is a bit of a hodgepodge, jumping back and forth between topics, with mostly short topical comments on many aspects of professional football.

I did find the book rather entertaining though.I particularly liked where he makes lists, my favorite being his ranking of the greatest 100 football players of all time, and his list of the smartest coaches of all time.Lists are always fun because there is plenty of room for disagreement and prompts you think what your own list would look like.Who do you think King considers the greatest receiver of all time?It's not Jerry Rice.

Given that King is all over the map in this book I'll suffice it to say he does have some rather nice pieces in here.My favorites are where he talks about a particular person in the context of their character or an event.For example, the opening article on Ernie Accorsi, former General Manager of the New York Giants, and the story behind the Eli Manning for Philip Rivers trade during the 2004 draft is intriguing.His insights into Tony Dungy and Brett Favre are also insightful.

This book also includes asides about King and his love of his kids' sports, which are really totally unrelated to the topic at hand, but worthwhile reading nonetheless.

And despite that I find King a blowhard, he is self deprecating at time, like when he admits his prognostications that were utterly wrong.

The aspect of the book that is the most bothersome is his articles about Brett Favre.King admits he became good friends with Brett Favre when he stayed with Favre and his wife while writing a story on him.There is certainly nothing wrong with that.But, he is so close to Favre that he even brokered a phone call between Favre and an agent when Favre was contemplating coming out of retirement and was looking to sign with another team.I know in sports journalism the line is often crossed between being an unbiased reporter and a participant in the events.And while I will take King at his word when he says he has some insight into what Favre is thinking, his opinions about the drama king are not worth quite as much.He is no longer an objective observer on that topic.

That said, overall this was a worthwhile read and mostly entertaining.

... Read more

Product Description
Walter Payton was arguably the greatest running back in the history of professional football. A star for the Chicago Bears from 1974 to 1987, Payton rushed for a National Football League career record of 16,726 yards. Known to football fans everywhere as "Sweetness," he helped lead the Bears to a Super Bowl victory following the 1985 season and over the years established himself as one of the sports world's most popular and personable role models. Payton was beloved by his teammates, idolized by his fans, and embraced by business partners. He captured the heart of the Windy City with a graciousness complimented by a spirit of humility and a wonderful sense of humor.

Millions mourned in early November 1999 when Payton, a youthful 45, succumbed to cancer after a nearly year-long battle with various health problems. Even in his dying days, however, Payton maintained his dignity, a spirit of community charity, and a legendary ability to pull off practical jokes that would send friends and family reeling with laughter. Before he passed away, he reportedly also renewed his commitment to his Christian faith. His death on November 1 coincided with the day known as All Saints Day in many Christian quarters.

In Walter Payton, dozens of his contemporaries, former teammates, coaches, childhood and college chums, business partners, fans, and friends offer in their own words their favorite memories and anecdotes of this man they loved so much. Walter Payton is a warm, entertaining, and inspiring book about a man whose fame transcended the sport in which he competed into the widest realms of life itself. ... Read more

Product Description
Everyone knows Jim will be the star linebacker on the team if he can only conquer his fear of being tackled, but it takes a boy in a wheelchair to teach him that kind of courage. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

A valuable lesson about life and how you must face the possibility of getting hit
This book has a simple lesson, overcoming a realistic, yet irrational fear. Jim Nardi is a linebacker for the Vulcans, a team in a youth football league. Jim is generally a tough kid; he loves to hit people hard when he makes the tackle. However, he has an irrational fear of being tackled, when he has the opportunity to intercept a pass, he will drop the ball rather than take the risk of being hit.
This fear is creating problems for him; some of the other players on the team are beginning to make fun of him. Fortunately, his coach and older brother Doug is willing to let him try to play through it. Chuckie, a boy that contracted polio and is in a wheelchair trying to fight back to the point where he can walk again, further aids Jim. Chuckie's encouragement and sense of purpose gives Jim a perspective on his problems. The final game arrives and when the game is on the line, Jim makes a difficult interception and gives a hard shot back when he is tackled, learning that he can take the punishment to make the play.
Football is a tough game and injuries will always happen, which is how life is. The best way to do both is to accept that fact and play hard anyway, knowing that getting hit and maybe getting hurt are the consequences of being in the game. This is a valuable lesson that this book makes very well.

A Good Book!!
Catch That Pass is a good book because the kid Jim can't catch the football.Then he finally catches the football and runs as fast as he can run. His brother is the coach and he had the same problem as Jim. Something happens in the middle but I can't tell you because you need to read it to find out.

Catch That Pass!
Imagine yourself in the shoes of a football player who's afraid to be tackled. Think of the embarrassment.

Jim Nardi plays for the Vulcan's football team and his big brother is the head coach. He is about 12-13 years old, and is the main character.

The problem with Jim Nardi is that whenever he gets an interception he drops the ball because he doesn't want to get tackled. But his close friend Bucky, also on Jim's football team, tries to help Jim overcome his fear. Then at a game a pass is coming right to Jim, he intercepts the pass! But will he drop the ball? Read to find out.

This book is action-packed. In almost every scene Jim is on the football field in a game. This book is great if you love football, play football, and also if you cant overcome one of your fears in football.

The author, Matt Christopher, always describes Jim Nardi's actions on the field with excellent detail, and expression for every play of the game. I'd recommend this book to kids 9 through 14,also to people who like to read books with great details of expression and football action.

Good football book
This was very good book, and as a football player I realy enjoyed reading this because in some of the game scenes in the book it made me feel like i was realy playing in the game. Some faults in the book i thought came when the writer took like two chapters to describe a game.If he would of shortened it up a little it would have been a little more enjoy able and i would have rated it a perfect 5 stars.
Sincerly,
Kyle

PRETTY BAD BOOK
I THINK THIS BOOK WAS REALLY REALLY REALLY BAD BECAUSE IT WAS ABOUT FOOTBALL ... Read more

Product Description

They are loved and they are hated. There is no team in the NFL, no football team in the nation that stirs as much emotion, coast to coast, as the Dallas Cowboys. They are “America’s Team.” Born in 1960, the Cowboys did not win a game in their first season, finishing 0-11-1. From those humble beginnings emerged a franchise for which winning, and winning it all, was expected. Eight Super Bowl appearances, five Super Bowl victories—and, oh, the glory and the glamour that has surrounded this team. The names leap out of NFL history: Dandy Don Meredith, Bullet Bob Hayes, Ed “Too Tall” Jones, Thomas “Hollywood” Henderson, Tom Landry, Jimmy Johnson, Barry Switzer, Bill Parcells, Bob Lilly, and Mel Renfro to Roger Staubach, Tony Dorsett, Troy Aikman, Michael Irvin, and on it goes.

In

Dallas Cowboys the rich heritage of this famous football team is captured in an extraordinary collection of stories, a spectacular selection of images from the best photo archive in all of sports, and a mind-boggling array of stats, arcana, anecdotes, and memorabilia. It is the ultimate celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Dallas Cowboys.

Customer Reviews (4)

Wonderful service
My book came in excellent condition and was delivered promptly.I was very, very pleased with the service.

50 yrs of Dallas Cowboys
Outstanding book--vy well written.
It covers the Cowboy's 'golden years' right up through the Jerry Jones era...excellent story.
Steve Gilbert
Denver
303-521-0520

A Must Read For Cowboys Fans
Last week, I was fortunate enough to receive an advance copy of the soon to be released "Dallas Cowboys: 50 Years Of Football" by Sports Illustrated.

Now I've read my fair share of books on the Dallas Cowboys over the years, but this is the first one that I immediately cherished as a collectors item. Believe me when I tell you, that once you get this fine book in your hands, you'll find it very difficult to put down, and I'm not kidding you either.

The book is loaded with some of the most sensational anecdotes and articles about the Cowboys as brought to you by the some of the best sports writers in the country.

I love the way they broke it down into decades.


The photography is stunning and the book is loaded with avast collection of unforgettable shots that captures the entire history of this historic franchise.

Here is some additional information from the publisher:

Sports Illustrated will release `The Dallas Cowboys: 50 Years Of Football' on August 24th.

The rich heritage of the Cowboys is captured in this extraordinary collection of stories by the finest sports writers in the world, including Peter King, Tim Layden and Dan Jenkins, a spectacular selection of images from the best photo archive in sports, and a mind-boggling array of stats, anecdotes and memorabilia. It is the ultimate celebration of the Dallas Cowboys.

Sports Illustrated The Dallas Cowboys: 50 Years Of Football gives fans an insider look from Sports Illustrated senior writer, Peter King, whose in depth access to "America's Team" includes a three-city scouting trip with Jimmy Johnson to a training camp sit down interview with Tony Romo to discuss his personal life in the off-season.

From the teams humble beginnings to emerging in to a franchise for which winning, and winning it all was expected. Eight Super Bowl appearances, five Super Bowl victories and the glory and the glamour that has surrounded this team. Sports Illustrated The Dallas Cowboys: 50 Years Of Football revisits the names that leap out of NFL history: Dandy Don Meredith, Bullet Bob Hayes, Ed "Too Tall" Jones, Thomas "Hollywood" Henderson, the lineage of head coaches is a Who's Who list - Tom Landry, Jimmy Johnson, Barry Switzer, Bill Parcells and the Hall of Famers who could fill their own wing - from Bob Lilly, Mel Renfro, Roger Staubach, Tony Dorsett, Troy Aikman to Michael Irvin.

As you can see, this is an incredible book that any Cowboys fan would be proud to own.

Hopefully, all of you have already registered for our contest as we are giving away 25 free copies of these stunning hard covered books. You can still register by going here. [...]

Stunning photography, impeccable reporting
Review: "Dallas Cowboys: 50 Years of Football", edited by David Bauer

Sports Illustrated The Dallas Cowboys: 50 Years of Football

Bauer, David (ed).Dallas Cowboys: 50 Years of Football.New York: Sports Illustrated Books.2010 192p, illus.29.95 (list) ISBN 978-1-60320-114-8

My first impression when opening this book was "it's big, very big".Not by page count, but by page size (11 x 12 inches).It is easily larger than the other Cowboy histories issued so far this year by Aron, Housewright and Miller.My second impression: the photographs are stunning.Coming from Sports Illustrated I would've expected no less.

This book follows the successful format established by "The Football Book" (2005; revised 2009) and "The College Football Book" (2008): lavish illustrations accompanying excellent contemporary game articles.This is the first team-specific edition published by SI and it is a worthy addition to the canon.It deserves a spot on the bookshelf of every Dallas Cowboys fan.

The book is organized by decade, with more articles devoted to the championship decades of the 70s and 90s.Given the top-flight reporting and photography that SI is known for, it is easy to love this gorgeous volume and hard to find anything to criticize about it.Still . . .

The most obvious question that came to my mind was: what does Mark Cuban in a towel have to do with the Cowboys (photograph on page 166)?Or a 70s-era Southwest Airlines airlines stewardess dressed in hotpants (page 60), or Ann Richards and her shotgun (page 134)?And others too numerous to mention.I suppose in the minds of SI's East Coast editors, these are examples of Texas' popular "culture", and the Cowboys are the most widely known example of Texas culture.And that's fine, except nowhere in the book does anyone explain this.These "cultural" shots are thrown in without explanation and with no obvious tie to the Cowboys, other than the fact that all are from (or represent) Texas.The reader is left to puzzle this out for him (or her) self.It would have been nice if the jacket blurb had at least mentioned why these otherwise unrelated pictures were thrown in (pictures which most likely were never shot by SI photographers, let alone published in its pages).

OK, so how about the pictures that ARE about the Cowboys?As expected, most are stunning.But at least two of them have erroneous captions.On p41 Cowboys QB Eddie LeBaron has saddled a DL identified as Ed Hussman -- but that's not Hussman.According to Cowboys superfan and memorabilia expert Stephen Liskey, the DL is actually Joe Nicely.Later, on p67, a leaping Tom Landry is identified as being in Super Bowl X.But the Cowboy players in the picture are missing the Bicentennial shoulder patch worn by members of both teams.So Tom must've been leaping about something other than the Steel Curtain (hats off to fellow fan Marty Ogelvie for pointing this out).

The articles, while well-written, cannot hope to cover the entire history of this storied franchise, and they don't attempt to.Although it results in uneven coverage of the team's history, these snap-shots in time will give today's fans a valuable and unvarnished glance at how the Cowboys were viewed at the time.

These very minor criticisms don't diminish from an otherwise superb book.

© Copyright Fred Goodwin, Aug 20, 2010
americas_team@hotmail.com ... Read more

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No other family has conquered football like the Manning's. It all started with the dad, Archie, a former pro quarterback who taught his sons Peyton and Eli to play football. Now, as the brothers have both grown into pro quarterbacks', they're creating a legacy of their own, starting with two stunning Super Bowl wins. This exciting Matt Christopher biography gives readers the story behind this famous football family, as well as thrilling recaps of some of the most awesome games in NFL history. ... Read more

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Throwing a touchdown pass can be a thrilling experience. But pro players need to know many other skills like catching passes, making tackles, and kicking field goals to help their teams be successful. Work on the skills inside to play football like a pro! ... Read more

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Troy White can predict any football play before it happens. And when his single mom gets a job with the Atlanta Falcons, Troy knows it's his big chance to help them out of their slump—and finally prove his football genius. But unless Troy can convince star linebacker Seth Halloway that he's telling the truth, the Falcons' championship—and Troy's mom's job—are in serious jeopardy.

Customer Reviews (19)

Engaging preteen book about dreams coming true.
Nancy in Seattle, WA: Quick reading and fun storyline.Dreams abound for both the kids and the adults in this football focused tale. Focus is always on telling the truth, faith, family and friends.There are close calls, trials andadversity along the way.All of the dreams are started on their way to completion by the end though, like life, we don't know how it all turns out.

Great Football Book for Young Readers
My son loved this book.We also purchased Football Champ and Football Hero which he also enjoyed reading.I highly recomend this book. My son is 10 and loves the game of football!

Encouraging young people to read
Tim Green is a multi-talented man and this book adds yet another hyphen to his titles - youth author.I am way past my teens but I also found this an engaging read and highly recommend it.

Great Book
This book is a super book for a 13 yr old boy to read.It kept his attention thru the whole book.Read it in two days, and got a 100 on his book report.Loved it, and bought the Football Hero by Tim Green for his next report.

DR.4SHIZZLE


Troy White is an addict, well at least a football one. He loves the Atlanta Falcons and wishes he could be on the team. Troy has a plan that can possibly put him on the team. All he has to do is get to the Falcons and show them his secret weapon, HIS BRAIN.
To help Troy with his plan he'll need his two best friends, friend #1 is Tate; Tate is an eleven year old girl who loves football and is on the boy's football team. Friend #2 is Nathan; Nathan is a big boy who likes to use his size as an advantage. But Troy might not need help if his mom keeps getting in the way. Troy and his mom have a strong relationship but that could change.
Will Troy's mom lighten up her grip or will she tighten it harder and harder till Troy pops. Only way to find out is to read the Football Genius. Tim Green's book was a wonderful realistic novel about never giving up. I would recommend this master piece to 11-14 year old boys who love football. If you ever come across the Football Genius, buy it and read it over and over again until your eyes bleed of boredom. P.s. that boredom thing will take along time because this book is crackalackin.
... Read more

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Things couldn't be going better for Troy White. The Atlanta Falcons' football genius is at the top of his game, helping the team get to the playoffs. Agents and lawyers are knocking on his door with big-money offers for the upcoming season. And his own football team has just won the Georgia State Championship! Troy's celebrating with his friends at linebacker Seth Halloway's mansion when another lawyer comes knocking—and he says, "I think I'm your father."

Customer Reviews (2)

Green's writing style of colorful metaphors and spot-on gridiron descriptions pulls readers into the heart of the game
Football is a game of calculated risk. Each team enters the field of play with a plan and a goal: to win within the boundaries of acceptable risk. Who monitors the boundaries and decides what the acceptable risk is? Twelve-year-old football phenom Troy White has found himself in the middle of the field of his life, and though he is used to taking some risk as a junior champion quarterback, he may not be prepared for this.

Everything seems in place for Troy to succeed in his dreams to have the money for college (preferably a good football college where NFL scouts will see him), win the backyard brawl between junior all-star teams from Georgia and Florida, and someday buy his mother a nice house and a car. She deserves everything in Troy's eyes because she's the only parent he's ever known. He has all but decided he will never know who his father is when Drew Edinger shows up at the door.

At the end of Tim Green's last Football Genius novel, FOOTBALL CHAMP, Drew rings the doorbell and tells Troy, "I think I'm your father," sending all of the boy's dreams in a tailspin with a new direction. His mom had drummed into his head that his father abandoned them both and that he didn't care, but now he is standing beside an orange Porsche in cowboy boots and wearing a slim gold watch. He's a lawyer from Chicago with big money clients, like mega-bucks rapper "G Money." Everyone but Troy is suspicious of Drew's sudden appearance after 12 years of silence. He claims he didn't know he had a son until Troy's amazing football prediction abilities were featured on "Larry King Live." Now he wants to get to know his kid and negotiate a big-time contract for Troy that will set him up for life as a rich young man. But is that really all he wants?

Green has fashioned a gut-wrenching situation for a 12-year-old who has spent years wishing his dad would be there to meet him after games, take him fishing, and catch footballs for him instead of having to throw them through an old tire hanging from a Georgia pine tree. Troy is elated his father is part of his life, but his mother knows better. She gets some information about her ex-boyfriend that seriously threatens everything. Dirty deals, money laundering and the FBI suddenly are part of Troy's life, but he has a chance to do something good in spite of all the dirt he unwittingly landed in by hanging out with his dad. The FBI offers a deal that requires Troy to take a big risk, but it could keep his father out of a boatload of trouble. That's all anyone has to say, and Troy is on board. After all, it's for his dad.

THE BIG TIME is a football-tough kind of story with a dangerous moment in the middle that readers won't see coming. Green's writing style of colorful metaphors and spot-on gridiron descriptions pulls readers into the heart of the game and the heart of a young boy who wants his dad to be there no matter what the risk.

--- Reviewed by Joy Held

A boy and his father
Troy's single parent mom is terrific; she's the PR person for the Atlanta Falcons, loving and supportive. But Troy, who's a football genius helping the Falcons to win their games while playing for his own school team, longs to see his missing father. His longing is a force to be reckoned with when dad suddenly shows up and mom fears the consequences of Troy falling under his spell. A charismatic lawyer, Troy's father, Drew, promises to show him the big time, playing on all of Troy's yearning for success and fame. Played out against the backdrop of great football action with the thriller elements Tim Green delivers so powerfully, THE BIG TIME is also a vivid picture of one boy's struggle to come to know the man who left before he was born. ... Read more

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[Siren Allure: Erotic Contemporary Romance]

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Especially for the football player or enthusiast, this unique gift book is filled with Scripture and football-related devotions from the Sports Devotional Bible. Unique leather-like grain binding resembles an actual football. ... Read more

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Recruited for his combination of size and speed, George Mills had the potential to become an outstanding college football player--but it never happened. A View from the Bench reveals the reality behind the glamour of college football and the tough experiences in the life of a benchwarmer.

Mills was a solid player who loved the game, but he had only one shot in nearly five years at making Nebraska's starting team. He found little time or energy left for academics after hours of drills, weight lifting, and team meetings. Now, with complete candor, Mills lays bare the true weight of emphasis in the "student-athlete" dichotomy.

Free from anger or malice, Mills tells of his struggle to come to terms with a sports career of "mediocrity." A View from the Bench is an honest reflection of the experiences of so many overlooked players.It will be meaningful to anyone who has watched or played competitive sports. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Informative Book, Especially His Relationship With Monte Kiffin
The book might be best targeted for Nebraska Cornhusker fans since most of information comes from when the author played in the early 1970's.However, because the book deals in large part with his relationship with Monte Kiffin, his defensive coach, the book has surprising relevance today.The book gives great insight into Kiffin's coaching style.

Mills also was very candid about his playing ability, his inability to gain and maintain weight needed to play his position and the problems he had being a student.I read Big Red Confidential years ago and found Mill's take on Boyd Epley to be different from that book.If one is an old Big 8 fan, the book mentions two other assistant coaches Mills played for, Warren Powers and Jim Walden, who later became head coaches in th conference.He did have tidbits about Bob Devaney and Tom Osborne, but his constant focus on Kiffin showed that college football players have more of a relationship with their most direct coach.

I would recommend the book even though a die-hard Nebraska fan would enjoy it more.

The Story of an Ordinary player
Interesting insight into " big time " college athletics. Parents can learn to guide their children into the " best option" for college athletics by being realistic. The book confirms what we all know. ... Read more

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College football is a sport of rivalries—and no two teams were ever more perfectly matched than the Miami Hurricanes and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. In Perfect Rivals, award-winning sportswriter Jeff Carroll takes us inside the locker rooms and onto the gridiron, as two storied programs with very different cultures battle for national supremacy, school pride, and the soul of the game itself.

Beginning with the Hurricanes’ nationally televised 58–7 pasting of the Irish at the Orange Bowl in November 1985, the two teams faced each other five times over a six-year span. The last three of those games had national championship implications, as a resurgent Notre Dame sought to reclaim its historic preeminence against a faster, mouthier, more talented Miami squad notorious for trash-talking opponents, stalking out of pregame buffets, and wearing military fatigues on the team plane. The games were marked by heartbreaking finishes, disputed plays, and nasty onfield brawls. Adding fuel to the fire was a controversial slogan created by a Notre Dame student and picked up by the press—“Catholics vs. Convicts”—which served to heighten the cultural (and, some would say, racial) tension between the opposing schools.

Carroll’s fast-paced, up-close-and-personal narrative centers on a handful of colorful characters on both sides of the rivalry: the coaches, from dapper Jimmy Johnson to punctilious Lou Holtz, and the players, including Miami’s Steve Walsh, a quiet Midwesterner and one-time Holtz recruit who defied the freewheeling Miami stereotype, and devout Baptist Tony Rice, only the second black quarterback in Notre Dame history, who defined the rivalry and decided the contests.

Filled with you-are-there depictions of game action and insights drawn from Carroll’s unfettered access to many of the major figures involved, Perfect Rivals is a vivid re-creation of one of the most entertaining eras in the history of college football.
  ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Not Bad, Not Great
A good visit back to this college football rivalry, but not a very strong effort overall. It was fun to relive the mood and tone of college football from the 1980s, but Carroll just does not give much depth to what he offers. Quite simply, he just fell short. Great idea for a book, good presentation of the basics, but he made little effort to expand on those basics. Much more detail and more views from those who were there easily could have added 100 great pages to this book.I'm glad I read it, but I'm not in a rush to recommend the book to anyone.

A Fumble
The rivalry between the University of Notre Dame and the University of Miami was college football's most intense, consequential, and controversial of the '80s, with the victor of the annual game going on to win the national championship each year from 1987 through 1989.With such high stakes riding on the outcome of each game, and with such bitter hatred engendered in each prideful camp for the other, the decade-long epic battle for college football supremacy waged by the Hurricanes and Irish provides an extremely compelling topic for a book.Unfortunately, Jeff Carroll fumbles the opportunity in what can only be described as a second-rate effort.

The first part of the book ("Collision Course") traces the genesis of the rivalry, Miami's rise from perennial punching bag to college football supremacy under the direction of Howard Schnellenberger and Jimmy Johnson, and new Notre Dame head coach Lou Holtz's monumental effort to rebuild the Irish into a national power in the wake of the disastrous Gerry Faust era and a humiliating 58-7 loss to the Hurricanes in 1985.It moves along at a breezy, never-dull pace as it alternates between each side's narrative.More attention is given to the Notre Dame narrative (for example, entire Miami seasons are glossed over and the fabled 1987 Miami-Florida State game is mentioned only in passing as a "one-point victory" for the Hurricanes, while sometimes even nondescript Notre Dame games are given detailed summaries), but this is not intentional and probably simply a function of Carroll's background as a writer for the South Bend Tribune and greater familiarity with the Notre Dame program.

The second section ("Catholics versus Convicts"), encompassing the period from 1988 through 1989, is where the book falls apart.One notable problem is that there's a paucity of context for the games themselves.Carroll briefly discusses the "Catholics vs. Convicts" t-shirts and the tunnel fight that occurred before the 1988 matchup at Notre Dame Stadium, but he completely neglects to describe the massive hype surrounding the game or convey the mood on campus.He doesn't say who was favored or by how much.He doesn't relate how hard tickets were to come by or how much they were selling for before the game.He doesn't describe the weather or the pregame festivities.He doesn't say how many press credentials were issued.He doesn't mention the Friday night pep rally, and he doesn't contextualize the immediate significance of the game nor its legacy.What was the campus scene after the game?What were the headlines in the following day's newspapers?What were the talking heads saying about it?Amazingly, Carroll doesn't even note that the '88 game was later voted by Notre Dame fans as the greatest victory in the program's history.None of this is addressed, yet it is precisely this kind of detail, which gives rise to a firsthand experience for the reader and brings an event into relief, that separates a good book from a middling one.

Bias also plagues the writing.The first section of the book is written in a very objective manner, but the second strikes a general tone of Notre Dame triumphalism.It's littered with comically over-the-top hyperbole ("Miami ignited a pack of blue and gold dynamite," Miami "stood no chance against Zorich," "It was payback time," "No such thing as the Notre Dame Spirit?Tell that Pat Eilers...Tell it to Tony Rice...Chris Zorich," etc.), Notre Dame apologias (Notre Dame's 27-10 loss to Miami in 1989, a game in which they didn't score after the second quarter and trailed by 14+ from the third quarter on, is described as "not being the blowout the score indicated" and blamed on Holtz warning his players beforehand not to get into a fight with the Miami players), and one-sided inclusion (in discussing the infamous Cleveland Gary fumble, no mention is made of the Notre Dame student newspaper conceding in its recap of the game that he was down before the ball came out; a Notre Dame official is quoted as saying the atmosphere at the '89 game was "evil," but absolutely nothing is included about the racist undertones of the "Catholics vs. Convicts"/anti-Miami imagery at Notre Dame Stadium in '88).Reading this section, it becomes painfully clear that Carroll is more concerned with Notre Dame aggrandizement and myth-making than producing a serious, factual exposition of this landmark rivalry.

Two further criticisms warrant mentioning.First, nearly all of the quotes from Hurricane players and personnel and a lot of other material pertaining to Miami is lifted from Bruce Feldman's excellent "Cane Mutiny."While Carroll is not guilty of intellectual dishonesty in doing so (he lists Feldman's book in his list of sources), it's disappointing that he didn't do much, if any, original research on the Miami side for this work.Secondly, the book lacks an index, which is obviously frustrating if you want to reference something or skip to a specific subject.

All in all, PERFECT RIVALS is a frivolous book that suffers fatally from substantial bias and lack of detail. ... Read more