During his 27-year tenure with the Chargers, beloved equipment manager Sid Brooks kept more than 5,000 football players from appearing naked before their cheering fans. The first African American to hold the job of equipment manager in the NFL, Brooks was tasked with seeing that each player left the locker room in uniform. But the means to that end was far more complicated—and outrageous—than one would believe. In Tales from the Chargers Locker Room, Sid recounts stories unique to a life spent working behind the scenes in the Chargers locker room. He features stories about Chargers greats like Dan Fouts, Charlie Joiner, Kellen Winslow, Louie Kelcher, John Jefferson, Rodney Harrison, and Junior Seau. With an eye for detail, he recounts tales of spies sent out to capture the opposing team’s playbooks; the night the lights went out on Don Shula; wild cab rides; the zany pregame rituals and idiosyncrasies; rivalries born not on the playing field, but at the dominoes table; and plenty of pranks and good-natured ribbing. Brimming with hilarity, insight, and fascinating behind-the-scenes stories, Tales from the Chargers Locker Room is a must-read for every Chargers devotee.
One of the oldest teams in the NFL, the Pittsburgh Steelers have carved one of the most exciting legacies in professional football. Founded as the Pittsburgh Pirates by Art Rooney in 1933 with winnings from a single day at the racetrack, the Steelers spent the next 40 years as the NFL’s “Lovable Losers.” All that changed in the early ’70s, as savvy draft choices and a smashmouth style of play transformed the Steelers into the most dominant team of the decade. In Tales from the Pittsburgh Steelers Sideline, veteran journalist Dale Grdnic captures the essence of the Steelers teams across the decades. Grdnic highlights many of the squad’s most memorable moments, including Franco Harris’s Immaculate Reception and their eight Super Bowl appearances. He covers the team’s greatest rivalries, including the epic battles with the Oakland Raiders and Dallas Cowboys. And he profiles the memorable players who’ve worn the Black and Gold over the decades, including Byron White, Johnny “Blood” McNally, Terry Bradshaw, Lynn Swann, Mean Joe Greene, Jack Lambert, Jerome Bettis, and “Big Ben” Roethlisberger. The latest addition to the Tales series, this is a must-have book for any member of Steelers Nation.
Some of the most entertaining stories from one of the most remarkable franchises in sports are told in this revealing look at the New England Patriots. While the team's owner, coach, and stadium now all rank among the best in the National Football League, the team was known for decades as having comically inept management and ownership, as well as the worst stadium in the NFL.In Tales from the Patriots Sideline, former players share their tales of the tumultuous years. Their initial owners had to sell the team after going bankrupt promoting a Michael Jackson concert tour. Their coaches have been a colorful lot, too, including one who accepted a new job the day before a playoff game.From the AFL years through the lowest of low seasons, Patriots history has also been sprinkled with the occasional spikes of success. They were a franchise on the verge of being relocated before current management took the team to its new heights as three-time Super Bowl champions. Fans can find stories about it all in Tales from the Patriots Sideline.
Tom Kelly, the legendary signature voice of USC sports for nearly five decades, combines with coauthor Tom Hoffarth of the Daily News of Los Angeles to take Trojan fans on a journey of memories and previously untold anecdotes from and about many of the great coaches, players, teams, and games in USC football history, as well as other sports. His story in Southern California starts with the recommendation of Jack Buck that he be hired as Chick Hearn’s color man on USC football and basketball games in 1961. During Kelly’s forty-plus year run, the Trojans boasted five Heisman Trophy winners, won five national championships, and played in 14 Rose Bowls and 24 overall bowl games. Kelly, who won five Golden Mike Awards and was named California’s Sportscaster of the Year three times, was inducted into USC’s Hall of Fame. His stories and anecdotes will become a must-read for all Trojan fans.
Beginning with their founding as the Dallas Texans of the American Football League in 1960, the Kansas City Chiefs have been one of professional football’s most storied franchises. In Tales from the Kansas City Chiefs Sideline, veteran sportswriter Bob Gretz brings the team’s rich history to life. Gretz begins with the Chiefs’ visionary, 27-year-old owner Lamar Hunt, who founded not only a team but an entire league. After the Texans won the AFL championship in 1962, Hunt moved the team out of his hometown to Kansas City. Two Super Bowl appearances as the representative of the AFL culminated in a Chiefs’ championship in 1970, despite being a double-digit underdog to the Minnesota Vikings. It would be the final game featuring an AFL team, as the Chiefs and nine other teams merged with the NFL. Gretz covers the battles leading up to the merger along with the high and low points in team history—the lean years (1972–88); the “Carl and Marty” era, when the team made the play-offs in six consecutive seasons; the “Joe and Marcus” show of 1993; the dismal 2008 season; and the team’s 2013 renewal under Andy Reid and John Dorsey. Tales from the Kansas City Chiefs Sideline is a must-have for any Chiefs fan! Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Sports Publishing imprint, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in sports—books about baseball, pro football, college football, pro and college basketball, hockey, or soccer, we have a book about your sport or your team. Whether you are a New York Yankees fan or hail from Red Sox nation; whether you are a die-hard Green Bay Packers or Dallas Cowboys fan; whether you root for the Kentucky Wildcats, Louisville Cardinals, UCLA Bruins, or Kansas Jayhawks; whether you route for the Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, or Los Angeles Kings; we have a book for you. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to publishing books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked by other publishers and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.
This revealing look at the New England Patriots captures the stories of passion, power, and struggles of one of the most remarkable franchises in sports. True Pats fans know that while today the team’s owner, coach, players, and stadium all rank among the best in the country, the early years weren’t so rosy. For decades the Patriots were a team known for having comically inept management and ownership, as well as the worst stadium in the NFL. It was only with the arrival of Coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady in 2000 that the Pats became a powerhouse. In Tales from the New England Patriots Sideline, former players share the hilarious and shocking tales of the team’s early tumultuous years. Readers will walk through the tragedies and triumphs of Patriots history. As any true fan knows, to understand how far your team has come, you've got to know where they've been. Without a doubt, Tales from the New England Patriots Sideline is a must-read for any Patriots fan or Boston sports fanatic.
It’s almost impossible to talk about Oakland football without bringing up the name of the consummate Raider, Tom Flores. Legendary for both his skills on the field and his coaching guidance from the sideline, Flores has been an integral part of the Raiders organization since its inception in 1960. Now Flores shares the greatest stories and anecdotes from his time with the team in Tales from the Oakland Raiders Sideline. Flores relives the heart-stopping thrills and adrenaline-surging passion of Super Bowl XV and Super Bowl XVIII, and provides behind-the-scenes humor from greats such as former coach and owner Al Davis and coach Eddie Erdelatz. Flores also shares tales of other Raiders greats such as Billy Cannon, Jim Otto, John Matuszak, Bo Jackson, and more. Without a doubt this is a must-have for any Raiders fan.
Few sports franchises can match the long, storied history of the New York Giants. Fewer still can match their rich tradition and legion of passionate, loyal fans. As a team that can trace its roots to the very start of professional football, the Giants have endured great losses, but have soared to even greater triumphs. Along the way, the people and the personalities who made that journey stamped their own indelible marks on the Giants. The Giants are a franchise that can boast of a founder, Wellington Mara, who as a youngster was handed ownership by his father and ended up nurturing the team, intently watching each practice as if it were his first. They are a franchise that could turn years of success into nearly two decades of failure, yet continue to sell out stadiums as they frustrated and teased a desperate fan base. From the Golden Age, when they shared a workplace with baseball's renowned Yankees and enjoyed their status as Kings of the City, through the ignominy of the disastrous play known simply and sadly as The Fumble, the Giants continued to captivate, inspire, and frustrate their diehard supporters. In Tales from the New York Giants Sideline, memories, anecdotes, names, faces, games, cheers, and tears come rushing back, along with new twists to old fables and old remembrances revitalized with fresh insight. There have been so many great players and so many great tales--like Phil Simms, nearly perfect in the biggest game of his life; Y.A. Title, battered and bruised, chasing that elusive title; the ferocity of Sam Huff; the grace of Frank Gifford; Lawrence Taylor's heroics; and Phil McConkey's heart. There has been a coach for every season and a story for every coach.Tales from the New York Giants Sideline details the motivational genius of Bill Parcells, the highs and lows under Allie Sherman, the misery under Bill Arnsparger and John McVay, the gregarious Alex Webster, the homespun Dan Reeves, Jim Fassel making friends, and Ray Handley making a mess. Only the Giants could have spawned the careers of not one, but two Hall of Fame coaches--Vince Lombardi and Tom Landry. All of the stories are featured in this book, with reminiscences bursting back to life in the words of the men in the game. Fans will read stories about the blood and sweat of training camp, the highs of the Super Bowl, the lows of last place, the good, the bad and the ugly, the fearsome opponents, the feared defenses, the quarterbacks who could and the ones who could not, the pride of the Mara family, and the wit and wisdom of general manager George Young. The New York Giants are a flagship sports franchise, and these are their stories.
From the hilarious to the surreal, from inside the huddle to inside the broadcast booth, twenty-eight-year Seattle Seahawks veteran Steve Raible takes fans to places they never knew existed. In this newly revised edition of Tales from the Seattle Seahawks Sideline, fans are offered an inside look at life in the locker room and on the sidelines of one of the NFL’s most beloved franchises. Readers will have the chance to laugh along as Jack Patera trades Andre Hines to the Dolphins after warning Don Shula that a worse offensive lineman never existed, to marvel as Raiders legend John Matuszak becomes Seattle’s offensive coordinator during the final minutes of the Seahawks blowout win, to come along with Steve Largent as the Hall of Famer obliterates Broncos safety Mike Harden in the ultimate payback, and so much more. Tales from the Seattle Seahawks Sideline brings all the Seahawks greatest players to life from Jim Zorn, Dave Krieg, Kenny Easley, Curt Warner, Brian Bosworth, Cortez Kennedy, Warren Moon, Mike Holmgren, Ricky Watters, Chad Brown, Shaun Alexander, and more. This insider’s account also explores the lesser known characters whose stories inspire laughter, tears, and lasting lessons. Tales from the Seattle Seahawks Sideline is all about the people, proving through vivid anecdotes why the Seahawks are one of the most storied franchises in today’s NFL.
