“How the Miami Hurricanes rose from a laughingstock to a college football legend-and reshaped American sports. When fans think of college football, they think of Miami-the cool school with street cred that all the kids dream of playing for. A powerhouse unlike any other, they are a dynasty fueled not by individuals but by the aura of “”The Miami Vice”"-a swaggering, trash-talking, us-against-the-world mentality. But less than 25 years ago, the program faced extinction. Now, five national championships-and five different coaches-later, Miami is the preeminent football factory, boasting such high-profile NFL alumni as Michael Irvin, Ray Lewis, Warren Sapp, Jim Kelly, Vinny Testaverde, Clinton Portis, and Jeremy Shockey. Nothing is typical about the ‘Canes. Not the brutal, “”voluntary”" 6 a.m. workouts in July. Or the merciless drilling of teammates who show fear. Not the constant pressure from their Godfathers, the ex-Canes who want them to uphold the legacy-and will make them pay if they don’t. And certainly not the reputation that has made the Hurricanes synonymous with excellence-even among superstar athletes. Now, an award-winning sportswriter gives us a rare, behind-the-scenes look at the Miami program-after more than ten years of special access as a former UM student and beat writer. This is the amazing story of how Miami has won more national championships over the last two decades than Notre Dame, Oklahoma, and Florida State combined-and gone from near-death to dynasty.”
Customer Review: Biased, not at all objective, and fairly ignorant summary
Hmmm… let me guess… Bruce Feldman went to the University of Miami? He did? Shocking!
The only reason I continued reading this book is because I am a big college football fan. The book goes something like this…
Feldman spends a few hundred pages defending the thuggery, classlessness, and corruption that is the University of Miami football program. It is a boring and pathetic defense, in which he blames administrators (wow, people actually want to emphasize academic integrity and sportsmanship?), the media (EVERYONE is just out to get the “U”!) and America (they hate us because we’re black). Feldman, fess up: Miami is a pure embarrassment not only to college football, but to anybody with a degree from “Suntan U”. Move on, folks. Some things just don’t deserve a defense– Miami football is one of them.
(Also, try to avoid listening to this guy whine when he’s on ESPN. Brutal.) More Info
Written by Stanley on August 28th, 2006 with comments disabled.
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“A legendary coach, a struggling team, and a storm of controversy: An award- winning sportswriter takes you inside a tumultuous season of Penn State football, in the bestselling tradition of A Season on the Brink. In his fifty years of coaching football at Penn State, Joe Paterno has become one of the most popular figures in American sports. Only one other coach has won more football games than Paterno; his team has won more bowl games than any other; and he does it all the way it was meant to be done, with his players succeeding in the classroom as well as on the field and in the pro ranks. Along the way, Paterno has transformed a once obscure agricultural college into a huge research university in the Big Ten, whose endowment now exceeds $1 billion, tens of millions of which “”JoePa”" has personally helped to raise. But lately the tide seems to have turned in Happy Valley. Since 2000, Paterno’s Nittany Lions have lost more games than they’ve won, and accusations of off-the-field crimes have tarnished his program’s reputation. Award-winning sports reporter Frank Fitzgerald followed Joe Paterno and his Nittany Lions through the 2004 season, from fundraisers in State College to the sidelines at Beaver Stadium. The Lion in Autumn delivers the complete story of this frustrating, tormenting, and ultimately exhilarating turning-point season and the history that led up to it. This is the chronicle of fifty phenomenal years-including the dynasties of undefeated and national championship teams that came before-and a riveting fight to reclaim a legacy.”
Customer Review: Good Synopsis of Joe Paterno and College Football
I hesitated picking up this book because even though it was published only one year ago, it is arguably outdated since Penn State football finally bounced back and had a very good year. That said, I am glad I read it because the book goes beyond the marketed “A Season with Penn State” storyline and provides a very good historical synopsis of Joe Paterno and his role in the history of college football.
Since Paterno has been around so long, people tend to forget his importance in the development of college football. Once he retires, he will undoubtedly be remembered in the same breath as Bear Bryant, Knute Rockne, Daryl Royal, Bud Wilkinson and the other Legends (with a capital “L”) of college football.
This book provides interesting insights into his personal history and the development of Penn State University, which Paterno literally transformed from a backwater agricultural school into a well-known and successful state school. I doubt any coach in college sports history has been more important to his school’s development than Paterno has been to Penn State.
The parts about the actual season are fairly boring, since PSU was horrible the year Fitzpatrick followed them but it is worth picking up if you are a fan of college football history. More Info
Written by Stanley on August 28th, 2006 with comments disabled.
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