A driving ambition linked Oakland and Kansas City in the 1960s. Each city sought the national attention and civic glory that came with being home to professional sports teams. Their successful campaigns to lure pro franchises ignited mutual rivalries in football and baseball that thrilled hometown fans. But even Super Bowl victories and World Series triumphs proved to be no defense against urban problems in the tumultuous 1960s and 1970s. Matthew C. Ehrlich tells the fascinating history of these iconic sports towns. From early American Football League battles to Oakland's deft poaching of baseball's Kansas City Athletics, the cities emerged as fierce opponents from Day One. Ehrlich weaves a saga of athletic stars and folk heroes like Len Dawson, Al Davis, George Brett, and Reggie Jackson with a chronicle of two cities forced to confront the wrenching racial turmoil, labor conflict, and economic crises that arise when soaring aspirations collide with harsh realities.Colorful and thought-provoking, Kansas City vs. Oakland breaks down who won and who lost when big-time sports came to town.

Seven decades of the intense Steelers-Browns rivalry.Football historians regard the games between the Cleveland Browns and the Pittsburgh Steelers as the basis for one of the greatest rivalries in NFL history. Authors Richard Peterson and Stephen Peterson, in telling the engaging story of these teams who play only a two-hour drive along the turnpike from each other, explore the reasons behind this intense rivalry and the details of its ups and downs for each team and its fans. The early rivalry was a tale of Browns dominance and Steelers ineptitude. In the 1950s and 1960s, the Browns-led by Hall of Famers ranging from Otto Graham and Marion Motley in the 1950s to Jim Brown, Bobby Mitchell, and Leroy Kelly in the 1960s-won 32 of the first 40 games played against the Steelers. In the 1970s, the Steelers-led by Terry Bradshaw, Franco Harris, and the Steel Curtain-finally turned things around. When the AFL and NFL merged in 1970, Art Rooney agreed to move the Steelers only if the Browns also moved into the AFC and played in the same division so that their rivalry would be preserved. Despite the fierce rivalry, these cities and their fans have much in common, most notably the working-class nature of the Steeler Nation and the Dawg Pound and their passion, over the decades, for their football teams. Many fans are able to regularly making the 130-mile trip to watch the games. From the first game on October 7, 1950, where Cleveland defeated the Steelers 30-17, to last season's infamous helmet incident with Mason Rudolph and Myles Garrett, the rivalry remains as intense as ever.

In this handy book, Augie Manfredo taps into 25 years experience betting on NFL Football to bring you exclusive details about the science and skill behind this lucrative business. Chapter by chapter, Augie shares personal stories of triumph and failure, important handicapping factors and the methods he uses to win big. As a bonus, Augie has included his most recent NFL diary complete with numbers. Learn the secrets that will take you from hobbyist to professional gambler.

Jose Mourinho Attacking Sessions is the first in a series of books which provide you with a blueprint of how to attack and score goals like the world's best teams. Michail is a UEFA 'A' license coach and has provided a full and extensive analysis of Real Madrid's best 48 goals in the 2011-2012 season, when they scored a record 121 goals to win the Spanish Championship (La Liga). This goal analysis of Jose Mourinho's tactics has been used to produce 114 practices organised into 30 ready-made sessions. Each goal is analysed, followed by a full session on that specific topic of Real's attacking play, with clear colour diagrams, detailed descriptions and coaching points. You can use these ready-made sessions to practice Real Madrid's attacking play and combinations. You can learn exactly how Real found attacking solutions for every tactical situation created by opponent's who defended with a deep, middle or high defensive line. A large section of this book is based on the transition phase. You can learn how to coach your team to play like 'the best counter attacking team in the world'. There are sessions on the transition from defence to attack in the low, middle and high zones. Practices included: * Functional Technical Practices * Phases of Play * Opposed/Unopposed Zone play * Counter-Attacking Exercises * Transition Games * Small Sided Games

In the first half of the twentieth century, Jack Trice, Ozzie Simmons, and Johnny Bright played college football for three Iowa institutions: Iowa State University, the University of Iowa, and Drake University, respectively. At a time when the overwhelming majority of their opponents and teammates were white, the three men, all Black, sustained serious injuries on the gridiron due to foul play, either because of their talents, their race, or, most likely, an ugly combination of the two. Moments of Impact tells their stories and examines how the local communities of which they were once a part have forgotten and remembered those assaults over time. Of particular interest are the ways those memories have been expressed in a number of commemorations, including a stadium name, a trophy, and the dedication of a football field. Jaime Schultz focuses on the historical and racial circumstances of the careers of Trice, Simmons, and Bright as well as the processes and politics of cultural memory. Schultz develops the concept of "racialized memory"-a communal form of remembering imbued with racial significance-to suggest that the racial politics of contemporary America have generated a need to redress historical wrongs, congratulate Americans on the ostensible racial progress they have made, and divert attention from the unrelenting persistence of structural and ideological racism.

In Pigskin Robert W. Paterson presents a lively and informative overview of the early years of pro football -- from late 1880s to the beginning of the television era. Peterson describers the colourful beginnings of the pro game and its oustanding teams (the Green Bay Packers, the New York Giants, the Chicago Bears, the Baltimore Colts ), and the great games they played. Profiles of the most famous players of the era - including Pudge Heffelfinger (the first certifiable professinal), Jim Thorpe, Red Grange, Bronko Nagurski, and Fritz Pollard (the NFL's first black star) -- bring the history of the game to life.

This volume contains the chapters about linemen from the first three major books ever written about modern football, by three Hall of Fame coaches and the man who invented the flying wedge:

American Football, by Walter Camp (1891), A Scientific and Practical Treatise on American Football for Schools and Colleges, by Amos Alonzo Stagg and Henry L. Williams (1893), and Football, by Walter Camp and Lorin F. Deland (1896).

The sport has changed in significant ways since then, but the fundamentals of the game remain intact and their profound coaching wisdom is timeless and relevant today.

The text is enlivened by more than 75 rare vintage images of linemen in action, originally published in newspapers and magazines from 1857 to 1900.

The original books were written during an era when players played the entire game without substitution. As a result, the descriptions of player positions mingled the responsibilities of what are now three separate and specialized offensive, defensive, and special teams platoons.

The offensive backs were also defensive backs, punters, place-kickers, and kick-returners. The quarterback played a linebacker position ("rush line back") on defense. Linemen (also called "forwards" and "rushers") likewise played both offense and defense. The offensive tackle was sometimes used as a ball-carrier.

This confusion is clarified in this updated version which separates and categorizes the responsibilities into offensive and defensive platoons to fit today's game.

The Lost Century of Sports Collection publishes rare works from America's sporting heritage. Volumes include The Lost Century of American Football, The American Football Trilogy, The First Decade of Women's Basketball, and Daughters of the Lost Century.

"The Essential Smart Football" is an examination of football's most important strategies and ideas, through the lens of the game's best coaches, players, and schemes. Brilliantly written and eschewing unnecessary jargon and technicality, it makes a major contribution to our understanding of football to help all of us -- coaches, players, and fans -- appreciate the game we love all the more.

"The Essential Smart Football" features analysis of football's top strategists and their schemes, including:

Urban Meyer's spread offense Tom Brady's no-huddle attack Bill Belichick's hybrid defense Gus Malzahn's up-tempo offense Charlie Strong's defensive evolution Mike Leach's pass-happy "Air Raid" The most popular scheme for running the ball in the NFL Nick Saban's school of defense.

The book also includes explorations of modern approaches to the West Coast Offense, evolutions in defensive fronts and coverages, the changing role of the running game in spread and pro-style offenses, and much more.

"Buy this book if you love football."
-- Gregg Rosenthal, Senior Editor, NFL.com

" Chris Brown] has put together a book that you need to buy if you're a football fan with a pulse."
-- Bill Barnwell, Staff Writer, Grantland

"I'm a better coach after reading this book. A must have in every coach's library "
-- Dub Maddox, Offensive Coordinator, Jenks High School, Jenks, Oklahoma (12x Oklahoma State champions)

"Accessibly erudite."
-- New York Magazine

"If you're a football geek, this is a mandatory purchase."
-- Doug Farrar, Yahoo Sports

"Advanced stats are great, but they mean a lot more when you understand where the players are moving on the field and why. Nobody has taught me more about where the players are moving on the field and why than Chris Brown."
-- Aaron Schatz, founder of FootballOutsiders.com, columnist for ESPN.com/ESPN the Magazine

"Must-have new book for any football fan."
-- Dan Shanoff, Quickish.com

On any given workday, any little thing might send Steve Smith's thoughts spinning back to Saturday-last Saturday, Saturday two weeks ago, Saturday two years ago, back into the thrilling minutiae of game day-until reality reminds him: this is not how well-adjusted adults act. Steve Smith is not a well-adjusted adult. He's a Nebraska football fan, and this is his rollicking account of what it's like to be one of those legendary enthusiasts whose passion for the Cornhuskers is at once irresistible and hilarious. A journey into an obsessed Nebraska fan's soul, Forever Red immerses readers in the mad, mad world of Husker football fandom-where wearing the scarlet-and-cream Husker gear has its own peculiar rules; where displaced followers act as the program's ambassadors, finding Husker subculture beyond the pale; and where the team's performance can barely keep pace with its followers' expectations but sometimes exceeds their wildest dreams. Revised, updated, and expanded from the 2005 edition, Smith's story of thirty-plus years following the team takes readers back to memorable game moments from 1980 up through the roller-coaster ride of recent years. Blending wit and insight, Smith offers to the uninitiated and the fellow fanatic alike a window on the world where fantasy and football meet, where dreams of glory and gritty gridiron realities forever join. This edition features a new afterword bringing it up to the dawn of the Scott Frost era.

Soccer Italian Style coaches Mirko Mazzantini (AFC Fiorentina) and Simone Bombardieri (Empoli FC) are both soccer professional coaches and in this book provide a full football training program from their top Italian Serie 'A' academies. This book contains 12 complete soccer training sessions detailing over 80 practices and progressions as used in the academies of the Italian Serie 'A'. Each session focuses on technical or tactical elements of training and are structured "from simple practices to more complex game situations." The sessions outline a complete program which provides a high level of training. The 12 sessions (over 80 practices) cover the following attributes: Technical training; warm-ups with a ball, ball control, attacking and defending from 1 v 1 - tactical game situations, passing and receiving, Explosive Power, coordination, agility and speed training, football specific conditioning with and without the ball and more. Tactical training; small sided games, phase of plays, functions, pattern play unopposed and opposed, psycho-kinetics training to improve player awareness and quick play, possession play, defensive positioning, counter-attacking, quick transition play, crossing and finishing, build-up play from the back and more. Most of the practices are cleverly structured for "global training" which means working on more than one attribute at the same time. This is valid for all players, with drills and exercises for specific roles (Attackers, midfielders and defenders). There are also numerous variations for many of the practices, meaning that they can be repeated again and again providing great practices for any coach to make hours and hours of top academy level training sessions.

A stirring portrait of the decade when the Steelers became the greatest team in NFL history, as their city was crumbling around them.

In the 1970s, the city of Pittsburgh was in need of heroes. In that decade the steel industry, long the lifeblood of the city, went into massive decline, putting 150,000 steelworkers out of work. And then the unthinkable happened: The Pittsburgh Steelers, perennial also-rans in the NFL, rose up to become the most feared team in the league, winning four Super Bowls in six years and lifting the spirits of a city on the brink.

In "The Ones Who Hit the Hardest," Chad Millman and Shawn Coyne trace the rise of the Steelers amidst the backdrop of the fading city they fought for, bringing to life characters such as: Art Rooney, the owner of the team so beloved by Pittsburgh that he was known simply as "The Chief"; Chuck Noll, the headstrong coach who used the ethos of steelworkers to motivate his players; and Jack Lambert, the linebacker whose snarling, toothless grin embodied the Pittsburgh defense. Thoroughly researched and grippingly written, "The Ones Who Hit the Hardest" is a stirring tribute to a city, a team, and an era.

If the National Football League is now a mammoth billion-dollar enterprise, it was certainly born into more humble circumstances. Indeed, it began in 1920 in an automobile showroom in Canton, Ohio, when a car dealer called together some owners of teams, mostly in the Midwest, to form a league. Unlike the lavish boardrooms in which NFL owners meet today, on this occasion the owners sat on the running boards of cars in the showroom and drank beer from buckets. A membership fee of $100 was set, but no one came up with any money. (As one of those present, George Halas, the legendary owner of the Chicago Bears, said, "I doubt that there was a hundred bucks in the room.") From such modest beginnings, pro football became far and away the most popular spectator sport in America.
In Pigskin, Robert W. Peterson presents a lively and informative overview of the early years of pro football--from the late 1880s to the beginning of the television era. Peterson describes the colorful beginnings of the pro game and its outstanding teams (the Green Bay Packers, the New York Giants, the Chicago Bears, the Baltimore Colts), and the great games they played. Profiles of the most famous players of the era--including Pudge Heffelfinger (the first certifiable professional), Jim Thorpe, Red Grange, Bronko Nagurski, and Fritz Pollard (the NFL's first black star)--bring the history of the game to life. Peterson also takes us back to the roots of the pro game, showing how professionalism began when some stars for Yale, Harvard, and Princeton took money--under the table, of course--for their services to alma mater. By 1895, the money makers--still unacknowledged--had moved to amateur athletic associations in western Pennsylvania and subsequently into Ohio.
After the NFL formed in 1920, pro football's popularity grew gradually but steadily. It burst into national prominence with the Bears-Redskins championship game of 1940. As one sportswriter put it: "The weather was perfect. So were the Bears." The final score was 73-0. Peterson shows how, after World War II, the newly-created All America Football Conference challenged the NFL. Though dominated by a gritty Cleveland team, the AAFC was never viewed by NFL teams as much of a threat. That is, not until 1950 when the two leagues merged, bringing about the Cleveland Browns-Philadelphia Eagles game in which the Browns buried the Eagles 35-10.
An elegy to a time when, for many players, the game was at least as important as the money it brought them (which wasn't much), Pigskin takes readers up to the 1958 championship game when the Baltimore Colts beat the New York Giants in overtime. By that time, the great popularity of the game had moved from newspapers and radio to television, and pro football had finally arrived as a major sport.

REMEMBER: BUM IS A NICKNAME, NOT A DESCRIPTION.

Bum Phillips became head coach of the National Football Leagues Houston Oilers in 1975. He retired from the league 10 years later as one of its most colorful characters of all time. While fans of Luv Ya Blue remember Phillips for his cowboy hat and boots, for his down-home Texas yarns, most people dont know he survived deadly battles during World War II, stumbled almost accidentally into football and later gave his life, during a trip to prison, to Jesus Christ. The book chronicles his transformation from a beer-drinking cowboy, U.S. Marine and football coach to a devoted son of God.

The complete story of a pro football icon. In it, you will learn:

Behind-the-scenes stories from his favorite NFL times. How a small-town man ascended the ranks of high school, college and pro football. Gripping accounts of his time during World War II. His struggle to balance family life with NFL demands. How a trip to prison catapulted this good ol boy into a faithful Christian.

He is a Bum - only in name. One of the most generous, loyal, and caring individuals I have ever known in sport. He balanced leadership and friendship better than anyone who ever stood on an NFL sideline. We can all learn from him and his remarkable life. Jim Nantz, Emmy Award-winning CBS Sports broadcaster

People go through life never having the chance to experience special times and special people. I was lucky to have had the opportunity to share all of this with Bum Phillips and I feel blessed having done so. It is an honor to have shared my life with him. Dan Pastorini, Former quarterback of the Houston Oilers

Bum Phillips book ] will be a blessing to you.He was a great football coach as well as a mentor to hundreds of football players. To me, his greatest accomplishment is the fact that he found the Lord Jesus as his Saviour at age 76.God helped him to succeed in his career because His graciousHand was upon him.Ilove you, Debbie and Bum, and I salute you Dodie Osteen, Co-Founder of Houstons Lakewood Church

When you read this book, its like being on the sideline with Bum Phillips, who coaches you up as only he can do. I love my coach and you will, too. Mike Barber, Pro Claim founder and former tight end for the Houston Oilers This book blew me away I am the No. 1 fan of Luv ya Blue and Bum Phillips, and Im still floored with the Bum I never knew: Marine Hero, Coach, Southern Gentleman, Family Man Add to the list: Born Again. And it shows. WOW DOES IT SHOW It will leave you in awe of the real Coach Phillips. Three words sum up the impact and scope of this book: The Lord, The Love, The Legacy. Its much, much more than just one great read. Dr. John Bisagno, Paster Emeritus of First Baptist Houston

In Patriot Reign (2004), Michael Holley wrote a bestselling look inside what makes the Patriot organization tick and win. In War Room (2011), Holley explored the draft and personnel strategy that makes the Patriots win year in and year out. Now, in BELICHICK & BRADY, he examines how the relationship between these two men has formed the core of arguably the greatest dynasty in the modern-day NFL. Holley is interviewing current and former Patriots players and coaches to provide an unprecedented portrait of Belichick and Brady, two future Hall of Famers. Timed for the beginning of the 2016 NFL season, this book reveals how their partnership has yielded four Superbowl rings, a feat unsurpassed by any other NFL team in recent history. Holley explores their partnership, how they strategized together, weathered controversies, and the big game wins, all fueled by behind-the-scenes anecdotes and information. It will be required reading for Patriots fans and students of the game of football.

2009 Reprint of the 1953 edition. How to scout football. Published/Created: Danville, Ill., School-Aid Co. [1953] Description: 111 p. illus. George Herbert Allen (April 29, 1918 - December 31, 1990) was one of a handful of extremely successful and innovation coaches of American football in the National Football League and the United States Football League. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2002.His classic How to Scout Football remains one of the landmark publications of the 1950s, along with Steve Belichick's Football Scouting Methods.

The Dynasties: Long Island High School Football is the first in a series of books about the top high school sports teams on Long Island. The first, a look at the best grid iron squads of all-time, breaks down the historical backgrounds behind the top 10 programs and the next 11 honorable mention schools. Through anecdotal stories and recaps of the biggest games in the history of every program, The Dynasties: Long Island High School Football is truly a one-of-a-kind piece of literature. No one has ever written about the history of Long Island high school football and Vaccaro categorizes the best schools by going deep into the foundation of every major team, player, year and game of each program.He considers a dynasty a program that has been consistent from day one, not just a school that won for a few years in a row. In this book you'll learn why high school football is a major fabric of any community and how football on Long Island is a special brand of sport, more so than other parts of the country.
Advanced Praise "Vaccaros book captures some of the special moments about the top teams in Long Island high school football history. Its a must read for every high school football fan on Long Island I couldnt put it down once I started reading it." - Andy Slawson, Newsday "This book puts a much-needed spotlight on a realm of sports that doesnt get the attention it deserves. Finally, there is a book that strings together the glory of the programs, players, coaches and administrators of Nassau and Suffolk football that have cultivated and enriched its history to this day." - James J. Parziale, Queens Tribune

Talking Trash, Trading Studs, and Drafting Sleepers -- an Insider's Guide to the World's Greatest Obsession

U.S. businesses lose $200 million in productivity each football season because employees are managing their fantasy squads instead of working.

In "Why Fantasy Football Matters (And Our Lives Do Not)," two grizzled veterans revel in the addiction that is fantasy football. From pre-draft hijinx to post-draft trash talk, from tumultuous trades to the perils of free agency, it celebrates the eccentric personalities, absurd rituals, and hilarious superstitions of one of the most fanatical fantasy leagues on earth.

With humor, insight, and a dash of advice, "Why Fantasy Football Matters" celebrates the thirty-two million Americans who prefer managing their fantasy squads to relaxing with loved ones. And it gives girlfriends, coworkers, and sports purists all the proof they need to accept that this is an obsession that really matters.

A unanimous All-American and member of the College Football Hall of Fame, Bill Glass enjoyed a remarkable twelve-year NFL career and was a four-time Pro Bowl selection. But he’s made his greatest impact as a loving family man and servant of God, establishing and running one of the world’s oldest and largest prison ministries.

In From Hero to Zero, Bill recounts his extremely difficult grieving process after losing his lover and spouse of sixty years. In his words, he “wrassled with the heartache, pain, and suffering, sometimes on top and sometimes on the bottom. Because we find ourselves on the bottom too often and it is healthy to admit to going through the valley of the shadow of death. But shadows can’t hurt you!”

Bill’s message is one of raw and complete honesty. His hope is that his struggles will be therapeutic for your pain and suffering―because sooner or later we all go through it.

- First time in paperback -
In this nostalgic look at Cleveland's last championship team, sportswriter Terry Pluto tells the remarkable story of the underdog team's surprise success and the colorful players who made that season so memorable.
"Pluto movingly reveals the substance of a mythic bond between men and a game, a team and a city--and thus lays bare how present-day pro football has surrendered its soul." -- Kirkus Reviews
"Terry Pluto, perhaps the best American writer of sports books has picked the right team to get nostalgic about. The 1964 NFL champion Cleveland Browns were sort of a combination of the 1955 Brooklyn Dodgers and the mid-'60s St. Louis Cardinals--the former because it was the only championship won by a team that was expected to be a dynasty and the latter because it featured so many people who were as interesting off the field as on." -- Houston Chronicle