Z came to expect a certain alchemical, trademark blend: words which were caustic and wry, at times self-deprecating or even puzzling, but always devilishly smart with arresting honesty. A complex package, that's the Doctor.  The one-time sparring partner of Ernest Hemingway, Paul Zimmerman is one of the modern era's groundbreaking football minds, a man who methodically charted every play while generating copious notes, a human precursor to the data analytics websites of today. In 2008, Zimmerman had nearly completed work on his personal memoirs when a series of strokes left him largely unable to speak, read, or write. Compiled and edited by longtime SI colleague Peter King, these are the stories he still wants to see told.  Dr. Z’s memoir is a rich package of personalities, stories never shared about such characters as Vince Lombardi, Walter Payton, Lawrence Taylor, and Johnny Unitas. Even Joe Namath, with whom Zimmerman had a legendary and well-documented 23-year feud, saw fit to eventually unburden himself to the remarkable scribe.  Also included are Zimmerman's encounters with luminaries and larger-than-life figures outside of sports, notably Donald Trump, Rupert Murdoch, and Hunter S. Thompson. But not to be missed are Zimmerman's quieter observations on his own life and writing, witticisms and anecdotes which sway between the poignant and hilarious. No matter the topic, Dr. Z: the Lost Memoirs of an Irreverent Football Writer proves essential, compelling reading for sports fans old and new.

    He brings the meetings, practice sessions, recruiting calls and game day experience to light like never before. Fans who want to know what goes on behind the scenes will find out in this book.”–RON ZOOK, head football coach, the University of FloridaIn Every Week a Season, acclaimed sports reporter and author Brian Curtis takes readers on an unprecedented whirlwind tour of NCAA Division I football. It’s a world that breeds great drama, a world that millions watch but few understand. It is a multibillion-dollar business. It is an obsession.To get to the beating heart of college football, Curtis embarked on a breakneck itinerary that took him where all red-blooded college football fans long to be: behind the scenes at nine big-time programs. In nine weeks, Curtis visited Colorado State University, the University of Georgia, Boston College, the University of Tennessee, the University of Maryland, the University of Wisconsin, Louisiana State University, Florida State University, and Arizona State University. He braved the rain to watch Wisconsin pull off the upset of the year; he was at Neyland Stadium to see Tennessee manage a thrilling overtime victory; he was in Tallahassee to witness Florida State’s dramatic double overtime battle for the ACC title. As added bonuses, he was with Georgia when the team fought for the SEC Championship, and on the LSU sideline when the boys from Baton Rouge defeated Oklahoma to capture the BCS National Championship. At each stop, he brings us inside the game’s inner sanctum: in team meetings and scouting sessions; on the field and on the sidelines, during scrimmages, practices, and games; at pre-game traditions, meals, and religious services; in the locker room before the game and at half-time. Virtually nothing and no one was off-limits. Along with the players, Curtis got to know the coaches–from the young guns to the legends–spending time with them in their offices and on the road. We see firsthand the challenges of running a major college football program–when called on, coaches must serve as CEOs, PR gurus, lawyers, politicians, and policemen. We also learn of the sacrifices made by wives and children that enable coaches to keep the numerous young athletes under their supervision focused, secure, and happy. Brian Curtis gives a no-holds-barred insider’s account that will rank as one of the most honest and accurate books on big-time sports in America. Short of strapping on a helmet, you’ll never get closer to the game.From the Hardcover edition.

    In his eleven years as a national television sportscaster, Rich Eisen has been envious of those athletes because Rich Eisen has never been able to do that on his job, so the host of NFL Network decided to write a book and use it as an admittedly feeble excuse to go third-person on everybody. Not throughout the whole book, of course. That may get quite exhausting for the reader. But for an entire book jacket? Well, Rich Eisen was all over that.That's the why behind this book. As for the how, Rich Eisen just took it one sentence at a time and hoped for the best. You know, start with a few words and turn those words into sentences which turned into paragraphs and chapters and, eventually, into this book. Rich Eisen didn't worry about the big picture and just kept focusing on the things that he could control--the keyboard, the ON/OFF button on his computer, his dictionary, his thesaurus, and last--but certainly not least--the spell-check on his word processing program. One day, when it's all over, only then will Rich Eisen look back on his career and try to put it all in perspective, but right now Rich Eisen absolutely knows he would not be where he is today without his spell-check.By now you must be wondering: What's this book about? It's about a journey. It's about eating, living, and breathing the most popular sport in the history of America. The passion. The pageantry. The pigskin. Thanks to his role as host of the NFL Network's signature program, "NFL Total Access," Rich Eisen gets to go to virtually every event on the NFL Calendar---the Super Bowl, the Pro Bowl, the Scouting Combine, the NFL Draft, and the Hall of Fame Induction Weekend. You name it, Rich Eisen is there. And thanks to this book, you can go along for the ride with him--in front of the camera interviewing league MVPs and former presidents of the United States or behind the scenes with some of the game's all-time greats like Deion Sanders, Ray Lewis, and Brett Favre, just to name a few. I mean, Rich Eisen doesn't want to name-drop. In all seriousness, Rich Eisen doesn't have an ego problem.At any rate, if you love the NFL (and who doesn't), then this book is for you. If you're curious what it would be like to live the sport year-round, this book is for you. You see, it's not all about Rich Eisen. It's about you reading this book and enjoying it to its fullest. At least Rich Eisen hopes you will.Advance Praise for "Total Access""I've always admired Rich Eisen's work, so it's no surprise to me that his book is very entertaining. What is a surprise is that he's somehow found time to write it in between the NFL Network's 6,347 hours of coverage of weak-side linebackers who could be draft-sleepers. That sort of programming and this book about it are both genuine public services." ---Bob Costas"A lot of things in our lives are far less than as advertised, but this book advertises Total Access and gives you Total Access. That's right. Total Access! I'm not kidding. I liked this book and I'm not a reader." ---Tony Kornheiser, columnist for The Washington Post and co-host for ESPN's "Pardon the Interruption""Rich uses his great sense of humor to detail the life of an on-air NFL personality. It is a world I know well, but still I couldn't stop turning the pages. It is a great read---a must for anyone who loves television and Pro Football." ---Joe Buck, Fox Sports

    But what Adrian Hanauer, Paul Allen, Drew Carey, and Joe Roth did when they started the Seattle Sounders FC was no joke. They meticulously planned the launch of the Major League Soccer (MLS) franchise with an eye toward some lofty goals. Then they stood back in amazement as they rocketed far beyond those goals buoyed by a team that ignored its “expansion” label and a fan base that wildly embraced them. Through interviews with key executives, athletes and fans, author Mike Gastineau tells the story leading up to the launch of Sounders FC, the MLS expansion franchise whose seemingly overnight success has captured the attention of the Seattle sports community, sports and entertainment executives, soccer followers across the country and the national news media. In Sounders FC Authentic Masterpiece, readers will learn: * How a money-losing soccer club rocketed from the ranks of the minor leagues to Major League Soccer drawing sell-outs and regularly topping 50,000 fans per match. * The unique relationships between the eclectic group of seasoned sports executives, Hollywood celebrities and bar room soccer fans who came together to build a sports culture that validated Major League Soccer in Seattle and across the country. * The personalities of the players and coaches who took different paths to the team and turned their diversity into a winning team starting on opening night. Gastineau communicates to readers the entire history of events that led to the Sounders FC launch beginning with the role soccer fans played in securing a professional football stadium for the Seattle Seahawks. Also emphasized in the book are the soccer fans, bar owners and soccer subculture that existed in Seattle and was waiting to be acknowledge by mainstream professional sports leaders and media. The book also details how that soccer subculture directly impacted one of the biggest deals in MLS history, the signing of superstar Clint Dempsey in 2013. This is a story of sports, business, culture, timing, and luck. It demonstrates how powerful business people were able to check their egos and embrace their customers all for the sake of the fans, the city, and a soccer culture desperate to embrace a sports team that treated them with respect.

    That fall, the Black Knights of Army were the class of the nation. Mark Beech, a second-generation West Pointer, recounts this memorable and never-to-be-repeated season with:- Pete Dawkins, the Heisman Trophy winner who rose to the rank of Brigadier General - The long-reclusive Bill Carpenter, the fabled "lonesome end" who earned the Distinguished Service Cross for saving his company in Vietnam - Red Blaik, who led Army back to glory after the cribbing scandal and had the field at Michie Stadium named in his honorCombining the triumph of The Junction Boys with the heroics of The Long Gray Line, Beech captures a unique period in the history of football, the military, and mid-twentieth-century America.

    With candor and detail, he talks about his famous contract dispute with Jerry Jones; the stunning transformation of the Cowboys, from a 1-15 team to two-time Super Bowl champs; his feelings about Jimmy Johnson and how Jimmy left the Cowboys; his teammates and friends Michael Irvin, Troy Aikman, and Charles Haley; his opponents around the league, including Lawrence Taylor, Thurman Thomas, and the whole rowdy defense in Philadelphia.

    He hits people with pile driver force. Running backs and pass receivers shudder with expectation as the charging free safety crashes into them. Surprisingly, Jack Tatum is a gentle man off the gridiron. Though he loves the combat, he hates the injuries that result, some permanently, and he has been responsible for his share. He also hates the cheap shot. Tatum says enforce the rules...cut down the injuries and allow the game to be played with some degree of civilized behavior. This is the only sport, except for boxing and hockey, where everyone is inevitably injured because the rules don't provide for adequate safety. The classic combat of the gridiron began for Tatum, an under-privileged kid, in Passaic, New Jersey, where he became just about the most celebrated football player that area of the country had every produced. Tatum makes no apologies for his roughness; but he says the wold picture and was strongly moved by the terrible accident which paralyzed Darryl Stingley after Tatum hit him in a pres-season game. In the book, Tatum evaluates the players, especially the quarterbacks, the coaches, his teammates, the fans and the total ambiance of the football experience in a hardhitting colorful style.

    No passing, running, tackling, or kicking. Hey, there isn't even a field. Yet the draft has become more popular than many other sporting events, including the National Basketball Association (NBA) and National Hockey League (NHL) playoff games, against which it goes head-to-head for viewers. In fact, the draft has spawned its own cottage industry in which names such as Gil Brandt, Mel Kiper, Jr., and Mike Mayock become as well-known as any of the first-round selections.In On the Clock, Ken Rappoport and Barry Wilner chronicle the history of the proceedings. The veteran sports writers take you from the first grab bag in 1936, when Philadelphia chose Heisman Trophy winner Jay Berwanger of the University of Chicago and saw him decline to play in the NFL, to the 2014 draft—considered one of the deepest in talent ever.Along the 78-year journey, learn about the competitions for the top overall spot (Peyton Manning vs. Ryan Leaf), the unhappy No. 1s (John Elway and Tom Cousineau), the big flops (JaMarcus Russell) and the late-rounders-turned-superstars (Tom Brady).Meet the draft wizards, from Paul Brown to Bill Walsh and Jimmy Johnson. And the draft whiffs that cost personnel executives their jobs.On the Clock takes you behind the scenes at one of pro football’s yearly major events. Barry Wilner has been a sportswriter for the Associated Press since 1975. He has covered virtually every major sporting event, including twelve Olympics, nine World Cups, twenty-six Super Bowls, the World Series, and the Stanley Cup finals, and has written thirty-nine books. He lives in Garnerville, New York.Ken Rappoport is the author of more than sixty sports books for adults and young readers. Working for the Associated Press in New York for thirty years, he has written about every major sport. His assignments included the World Series, the NBA Finals, and, as the AP’s national hockey writer, the Stanley Cup Finals and the Olympics. He lives in Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey.

    With a completely unlikely but forever memorable cast of characters—including the slight, lisping coach Lou Holtz; the star quarterback, Tony Rice; five foot nothing Asian kicker, Reggie Ho; NFL-bound Ricky Watters; and a crazed and ferocious defensive line, among others—Notre Dame whipped millions of fans into a frenzy. This roller coaster season of football includes the infamous Catholics vs. Convicts game (Notre Dame vs. Jimmy Johnson's #1 ranked Miami Hurricanes). The two teams were undefeated when they met at Notre Dame Stadium, with the Irish winning in the final seconds by a final score of 31-30.With original reporting and interviews with everyone from the players to the coaches, detailed research, and access to the Notre Dame archives, Jerry Barca tells a gripping story of an unbelievable season and the players who would become legends. More than a Notre Dame book, Unbeatable is a compelling narrative of one of the most incredible sports stories of the last century—the unlikely tale of an underdog team coming together and making history.

    The Americans were outsiders to the sport, the underdogs of the event, a 500-to-1 long shot. But they were also proud and loyal men -- to one another, to their communities, and certainly to their country. Facing almost no time to prepare, opponents with superior training, and skepticism from the rest of the world, this ragtag group of unknowns was inspired to a stunning victory over England and one of the most thrilling upsets in the history of sports.Written by critically acclaimed author Geoffrey Douglas, and now a film directed by David Anspaugh (Hoosiers), The Game of Their Lives takes us back to a time before million-dollar contracts and commercial endorsements, and introduces us to the athletes -- the Americans -- who showed the world just how far a long shot could really go.

    This autobiography offers an inside look at not just thefacts, but the thoughts, feelings and faith behind the familiar, stoic sideline visage. Illustrations.

    would start a new professional league. The North American Soccer League had failed just four years prior, and the prospects of launching a new league for Americans, who didn’t share the rest of the world’s love for soccer, were both exciting and daunting.The United States of Soccer is the engaging history of MLS’s bootstrap origins prior to its 1996 launch, its near-demise in the early 2000s, its surprising resilience and growth in the following years, and its continued rise in respectability and recognition from soccer fans around the world.The book also explores the origin of a number of MLS’s best-known supporters groups – the superfans responsible for setting the tone within MLS stadiums and defining what it is to be a North American soccer fan. The book looks at how MLS helped develop the massive American audiences for the most recent men’s and women’s World Cups – peaking at 27 million for the 2015 Women’s World Cup finals – even as it looks to expand its number of franchises and grow its audience in a sports-saturated world.Phil West chronicles those fans’ voices – intermingled with league officials, former players and coaches, journalists, and newspaper accounts – to detail MLS’s remarkable journey for those new to the U.S.’s top-tier league, as well as those who think they know the full MLS story.

    From its humble beginnings in Canton, Ohio, to its emergence as a sport cherished by millions, all the key moments and famous athletes are honored within the pages of this handsomely produced book. In addition to the lively text, and action and portrait photography, the story of the game and the context in which it grew are animated by original lists, charts, creative statistics, and infographics, along with beautiful photos of the evolving equipment and artifacts essential to the story of the sport. A perfect gift, NFL: 100 Years will be cherished by every football fan, new or old.

    In the legendary manager's very first book, and in his own images and captions, Jose Mourinho charts the peaks and troughs of the opening fifteen years of what has been a stellar rise to the summit of the global game.Through more than 120 personally selected images (some of which are exclusive to the book), fans will relish an intimate and unmissable opportunity to understand and further appreciate this giant of the sport.

    But then Ryan was forced to redefine success. Suddenly, it was no longer measured by tackles or sacks, but by purpose and faith.WALKING MIRACLE is the story of this new definition of success, following the arc from December 4, 2017, when Shazier was injured playing the Cincinnati Bengals, to his retirement. For three years, Shazier doggedly pursued a return to professional football. He took small wins as “first downs” on the drive to return to the field: moving his toes, walking, dancing at his wedding, and ultimately running and returning to the team. What Shazier didn’t realize is that along the way, he was preparing himself for another purpose—that of father and husband, philanthropist, and football analyst. The journey was preparing him not for a renewed life as a middle linebacker, but a renewed life after the game.Here we see Shazier overcome childhood alopecia, which caused a great deal of emotional pain, and scoliosis, which nearly robbed him of his dreams of playing college and professional football. We gain insights into legendary coaches Urban Meyer and Mike Tomlin. And we see him star on the field. Shazier was one of the best defensive players in Steeler history—a history full of great defensive stars.WALKING MIRACLE—the message on a bracelet given to him by his godmother—is the story of Ryan’s comeback, but it’s also a book of life’s lessons, challenges, and a love letter to the power of positive thinking.