Book picks similar to
When Lions Were Kings: The Detroit Lions and the Fabulous Fifties by Richard Bak
sport-studies
sports
football
history-north-america
The Pounding Hearts Series: Volume One
Izzy Sweet - 2018
The Pounding Hearts Series is full of badass MMA fighters who will beat the crap out of anyone who tries to mess with their girls. Four full-length, standalone books, each features a dominant alpha hero and a young heroine trying to make her way in the world. Book One - Banging Reaper Two men. Only one can be the best in the ring. Only one can make her completely his. Yeah, they call me Reaper, because I make anyone who fights me wish he was dead. I'm large and in charge with a big house, two cars, and enough money to party for the rest of my days. Life is great—but meeting Avery changes everything. She's nothing like the ring girls I usually hook up with. There’s just something about her that brings out the protective beast inside me. She needs to be mine, but that cheating asshole Ethan is in the way. I'll do whatever it takes to claim her ... even if that means destroying her best friend. Book Two – Slamming Demon Second chances don't come easy. Sometimes, you have to fight like hell for what you want. I'm a demon in the ring ... but Mandy still owns my heart. That doesn't mean I'm ready to pick up where we left off, though. I don't know if I forgive her, but I'm not letting anyone else near her. She's mine to protect whether she knows it or not... Book Three – Bucking Bear Sometimes, the biggest fights of your life are the ones outside the ring. I’ve never known a woman like Grace before. As soon as I met her, I wanted to claim her, make her mine, and protect her from everything. And her little girl already feels like my own daughter. So if her jerk of an ex tries to mess with Grace -- or Hope -- he’s going to find out a grizzly would be easier to fight than me. No one hurts my girls. Book Four – Breaking Beast He’s determined to protect her, even if it breaks him. Life’s been pretty damn good to me. As the reigning middleweight champion, I’ve got money, power, and fame. Not to mention a surplus of women willing to jump into my bed. All in all, I’ve got few complaints. I’m just living the dream… then Christy falls into my lap. She’s young, vulnerable, and innocent. And she has enough on her that plate that she doesn’t need any grief from an old bastard like me. But she’s the most beautiful woman I’ve ever laid eyes on. I can’t stop myself from wanting her, even though there’s more than a decade between us. I’m trying hard to keep my hands to myself, but she’s proving to be a temptation too great to resist…
At Your Best: A Rags to Riches Romance
Mycah Edwards - 2021
Brendon McCullum - Declared
Brendon McCullum - 2016
The holder of many records, ‘Baz’ is known for speaking his mind. He talks about growing up loving sport more than anything, getting better and better at cricket (although he was a good enough rugby player to keep Dan Carter out of the South Island Schoolboy rugby team) and his uncertain transition to international cricketer. In this explosive autobiography he opens up on the many controversies he has been involved in, including the Chris Cairns affair and the leadership change from Ross Taylor. He exposes behind-the scenes machinations as well as the private moments of exultation, tumult and despair. One of New Zealand’s and the worlds most admired cricketers, he is credited with changing the face of the game internationally.
The Missing Ring: How Bear Bryant and the 1966 Alabama Crimson Tide Were Denied College Football's Most Elusive Prize
Keith Dunnavant - 2006
It is both a story of a changing era and of an extraordinary team on a championship quest. Very few institutions in American sports can match the enduring excellence of the University of Alabama football program. Across a wide swath of the last century, the tradition-rich Crimson Tide has claimed twelve national championships, captured twenty-five conference titles, finished thirty-four times among the country's top ten, and played in fifty-three bowl games.Especially dominant during the era of the legendary Paul "Bear" Bryant, the larger-than-life figure who towered over the landscape like no man before or since, Alabama entered the 1966 season with the chance to become the first college football team to win three consecutive national championships. Every aspect of Bryant's grueling system was geared around competing for the big prize each and every year, and in 1966 the idea of the threepeat tantalized the players, pushing them toward greatness. Driven by Bryant's enthusiasm, dedication, and perseverance, players were made to believe in their team and themselves. Led by the electrifying force of quarterback Kenny "Snake" Stabler and one of the most punishing defenses in the storied annals of the Southeastern Conference, the Crimson Tide cruised to a magical season, finishing as the nation's only undefeated, untied team. But something happened on the way to the history books.The Missing Ring is the story of the one that got away, the one that haunts Alabama fans still, and native Alabamian Keith Dunnavant takes readers deep inside the Crimson Tide program during a more innocent time, before widespread telecasting, before scholarship limitations, before end-zone dances. Meticulously revealing the strategies, tactics, and personal dramas that bring the overachieving boys of 1966 to life, Dunnavant's insightful, anecdotally rich narrative shows how Bryant molded a diverse group of young men into a powerful force that overcame various obstacles to achieve perfection in an imperfect world.Set against the backdrop of the civil rights movement, the still-escalating Vietnam War, and a world and a sport teetering on the brink of change in a variety of ways, The Missing Ring tells an important story about the collision between football and culture. Ultimately, it is this clash that produces the Crimson Tide's most implacable foe, enabling the greatest injustice in college football history. "Keith Dunnavant has written yet another fabulous book about the fabled Alabama football program. You will be amazed at how one of the great injustices in the history of college football cost them their rightful place in history. And you just thought the system was screwed up now." ---Jim Dent, author of The Junction Boys "Keith Dunnavant nails it: all the sacrifices the 1966 Alabama team made to win three national championships in a row, and how we were robbed at the ballot box."---Jerry Duncan, one of the boys of 1966 "Dunnavant infuses reportage and passion into a tale that every Alabamian of a certain age knows: For all the crying about Penn State in 1969, Penn State in 1994, or Auburn in 2004, no team ever got shafted the way the 1966 Crimson Tide did. It's all here: the churning legs, the churning stomachs, and the dreaded gym classes where Bear Bryant's boys made the sacrifices he demanded in order to become champions. They conquered their opponents on the field, but proved to be no match for the politics of the day off the field. The '66 Tide is still waiting for the Missing Ring. Thanks to Dunnavant, we don't have to." ---Ivan Maisel, senior writer, ESPN.com, and co-author of A War in Dixie "Absolutely stunning. The Missing Ring left me breathless. Keith Dunnavant has proven again why he is one of America's greatest sports authors and historians. With so much having been written about Bryant and Alabama, I had my doubts going into this book that there was something I didn't know or hadn't read. Yet Dunnavant has managed to strike gold with The Missing Ring in every way and shape imaginable. His quiet prose goes down as effortlessly as bourbon and branch water. Fans of college football will marvel at his painstaking research. Dunnavant turned the clock back forty years and it was 1966 all over again. The pain and the glory, the pride and the prejudice, all brought to life in the pages of this extraordinary book." ---Paul Finebaum, Paul Finebaum Radio Network
A Golf Swing You Can Trust
John Hoskison - 2012
You needn't be most golfers.A Golf Swing You Can Trust is an original work by John Hoskison, a deep-thinking PGA tour player and teacher. Inside, John reveals how, after years of slicing, he went from the worst player on the European Tour to the National PGA Professional Champion by using these simple techniques.From the grip to the finish position, John coaches using humor, photos and unique analogies to explain how the golf swing works and how to build a swing you can trust. Whether a golfer wants to improve their driving off the tee, iron shots to the green or their chipping and pitching, the tips and drills in this book will make it easier to hit the shots consistently. If any golfer wants to build a swing that works, this is a must read. *Don't miss John's new biography about his days on the European Tour called - No Hiding in The Open.* Excerpt from A Golf Swing You Can Trust:The correct stance is vital if you want to build a simple swing that repeats. But most golfers switch off and skip these chapters of a golf instruction book. I understand that. The grip and aim are not as alluring as advice on the theoretical advantages of pronation or supination through impact. And hey! You've been told you have a nice practice swing--you can't be that far off. Aiming correctly is for beginners!So just to dispel any reservations you may have that this book is not for you, here's one last piece of motivational talk before we move on to check your stance. It's very often a golfer makes a great practice swing but when they come to hit the ball the swing's completely different. That's because the hands and body don't communicate on a practice swing--they let you get on with it on your own. They only bother to 'talk' to each other when you're about to hit a shot at a specific target.When the crunch comes and you're ready to swing back, if the aim of the club doesn't match up to your intended swing path, they hit the panic button, take control and stick the swing on autopilot. They program in what they have to do and you can't override it. You might try to take the club back in one piece but it you're not aiming correctly--they quickly take over. And if you think you can kid them you'd have done it by now.If you are aiming at a target 250 yards away and your club face is only 3 degrees to the right, it will be pointing 13 yards right of target. If you try to replicate your nice square practice swing, but your hands pick up where the club is aiming the two angles are so conflicting your orthodox swing becomes impossible.The only time you can override your natural alarm system is when you're standing in front of a pro and he's watching you like a hawk. Then the alarm system becomes dormant--it trusts the pro to watch over you. Soon as you walk out the teaching bay, it switches back on.REVIEWS:"John taught himself great technique and knows as much about the golf swing as anyone I've met. His explanation of the swing is fantastic." ~Nick Mitchell, Former European TourPGA Player"I went to John for the usual stuff; head in hands, not knowing what shot was coming next. John kept it simple... got me back enjoying my golf again.
Dalglish: My Autobiography
Kenny Dalglish - 1996
This edition has been updated to cover the 1996/1997 season and Dalglish's move to become Newcastle manager.
The Football Ramble
Marcus Speller - 2016
The weekly podcast has resonated with supporters around the world and their sold-out live shows have been a massive hit.This book is a collaboration from all four presenters and will tackle the real issues from fans you won’t see or hear on Sky Sports, or anywhere else for that matter.From the weird and wonderful, from the Alan Pardew to the Kevin Keegan, the Ramble has it covered. Putting all aspects of the game under the microscope, this book is a timely reminder of why we just can’t take our minds off football.
Playing with the Enemy
Madison Wright - 2019
Tall, Dark and Douchey is causing me all kinds of problems... Working 3 jobs while at college and struggling to maintain my GPA, I crashed pretty hard. The result. I’m being punished and I have to share a room with the biggest name and hearth-throb on campus. The trouble: • He’s the burning hot, bad-boy superstar of the football team • Biggest sports star on campus and even bigger jerk • Sexy as hell My only problem, I’m a SUCKER for a bad boy and damn if his dominant attitude isn’t skin tingling. And now he sleeps on a bed only a few feet from mine! One game day with him and my life changes forever. Will I be able to make it through this semester with my GPA and dignity intact?…
The Lost Art of Putting
Gary Nicol - 2018
To be childish is to expect a certain outcome will come your way, that you deserve to hole the putt or that you shouldn’t miss from a certain distance. The Lost Art of Putting will help you become more child-like on the greens and less childish. Leading tour coach Gary Nicol and performance coach Karl Morris have 60 years’ combined coaching experience. It is their belief that the game of golf is not about finding ‘the’ way to do it but more a case of discovering, or perhaps more importantly uncovering, ‘your’ way to do it. The perspective and concepts they share with you in this book have the potential to liberate you so that you can experience what you are truly capable of on the greens.
White Storm: The Story of Real Madrid
Phil Ball - 2002
They include twenty-nine league titles, nine European Cups, seventeen Spanish Cups, two UEFA Cups and three World Club Championship titles.The story of Real Madrid is, however, much more than the mere sum of its achievements. The club has always attracted the biggest names in the game - the type of player more recently referred to by Los Merengues as 'galáctico'. And for every Figo, Zidane, Ronaldo or Beckham, there is a legend from the past.White Storm charts the history of the club from its foundations to the golden period of Di Stéfano and Puskas, through the 'hippy years' to the modern embodiment of Madridismo - Raúl. It ends with an analysis of the Beckham impact, the disintegration of the Florentino Pérez regime and a look at what the future might hold for the world's most famous club.
Bigger Than the Game: Bo, Boz, the Punky QB, and How the '80s Created the Modern Athlete
Michael Weinreb - 2010
Greed and excess defined the 1980s, and the sports world was no exception. Shifting from the love of the game to the love of money, athletes made the transition from representing honor and humility to becoming brash and branded. Capturing the stories of headliners who capitalized on this trend, "Bigger Than the Game" charts the rise (and sometimes spectacular fall) of four athletes over the span of one of the most dramatic eras in sports. Meticulously researched, with stirring, you-are-there reporting, "Bigger Than the Game" assembles a cast that includes Jim McMahon, who took the Chicago Bears to Super Bowl glory despite his penchant for partying and his aversion to following the game plan; Brian Boswoth, the university of Oklahoma linebacker who mugged for the cameras while calling the NCAA a communist organization; Bo Jackson, who pursued promising careers in both pro football and baseball; and Len Bias, poised to ensure the Boston Celtics' dominance but died of a cocaine overdose just one day after the draft. Also packed with portraits of folk heroes such as "Refrigerator" Perry and Michael Jordan, "Bigger Than the Game" offers a riveting ride for every sports fan.
Rookie Moves
Tarrah Anders - 2020
They aren’t supposed to play much. They aren’t supposed to attract attention. They definitely aren’t supposed to be getting in trouble. But when Grant Toolson joins the famed Seattle Professional Football team, he’s already made a name for himself, on the field and off.When the team decides he needs to clean up his more than a little rough-around-the-edges image, in steps Emily Masterson, the prim and proper daughter of Seattle's Mayor with a planned meeting. Only, she's not as prim and proper as everyone thinks. Not with Grant and not when it comes to what she wants. Is his image cleaned up and does the relationship work out after hearing hushed conversations? Well, that remains to be seen...
Football Dynamo: Modern Russia and the People's Game
Marc Bennetts - 2008
But now the oligarchs who profited from the post-Soviet turmoil are supporting the nation's football clubs and their dreams of glory, resulting in unprecedented success. Along this journey into the heart of Russian football, Marc Bennetts meets the managers, oligarchs, players, pundits and fans that define the Russian Premier league, now the fastest-growing and most intriguing football league in the world. From Andrei Arshavin and the national team's adventures at Euro 2008 to the symbolism of a club from war-torn Chechnya lifting the Russian FA Cup, Football Dynamo uncovers shocking revelations about corruption, hooliganism and racism, but also the true beauty of the game and the country.
Believe Us: How Jürgen Klopp transformed Liverpool into title winners
Melissa Reddy - 2020
The Reds became the first team in British history to hold the European Cup, Super Cup, World Club Cup and domestic league title simultaneously in a masterclass of free-scoring, full throttle footballing prowess.Journalist Melissa Reddy reveals the inside story of Jürgen Klopp’s astonishing revival of Liverpool, culminating in the club’s first domestic league trophy in thirty years. Featuring incisive and insightful reporting, and the thoughts of players, management and club hierarchy, Believe Us paints a vivid picture of this titanic sporting success. Reddy’s unparalleled access to the club brings interviews with everyone from fans and key backroom staff to players including talismanic captain Jordan Henderson, and of course Klopp himself.The perfect gift for any fan of the club or its inimitable leader, this is heavy metal football writing at its best.
Drive for Five: The Remarkable Run of the 2016 Patriots
Christopher Price - 2017
They become larger than life and bigger than anyone ever thought possible, leaping off the field, the court, or the diamond and into the annals of not only history, but the very fabric of the American milieu. We all just witnessed such a moment on February 5th, 2017, when the New England Patriots battled back from the largest deficit in Super Bowl history to once again become world champions and secure Tom Brady's legacy as the greatest quarterback of all time.Amid a season of controversy, turmoil, and the most tumultuous political climate of our lifetime, the Patriots won. In spite of becoming entangled in the national spotlight on several occasions, the Patriots won. And in spite of being faced with any number of circumstances that would sink almost every other franchise in the NFL, the Patriots won.The season began with the fallout around Deflategate and losing their MVP-caliber quarterback for the first four games of the season, but honestly, the Deflategate saga was just a small part of it all.This is the story of how the Patriots rallied together as a team to surpass their obstacles on and off the football field and how that led to a remarkable run to the title - and the biggest comeback in Super Bowl history.Complete with player interviews, behind-the-scenes stories never told before, and content provided by Patriots players themselves, Drive for Five provides a unique level of insight and access to the story behind the legendary New England Patriots' 2016 season.