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Title details for War Football by Chris Serb - Available

War Football

World War I and the Birth of the NFL

by Chris Serb
ebook
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During World War I, American army camps, navy stations and marine barracks formed football's first true all-star teams, competing against each other and top colleges while raising millions of dollars for the war effort. More than fifty college football hall-of-famers, dozens of future generals, and two Medal of Honor winners would play for, coach, or promote military teams during the war, including Dwight Eisenhower, Walter Camp, and George Halas.
In War Football: World War I and the Birth of the NFL, Chris Serb recounts a fascinating chapter of military and sports history. He details three of the best but long-forgotten seasons of American football, when college amateurs mixed with blue-collar pros on the field of play. These games showed investors a lucrative market for teams of post-collegiate stars and made players realize that their football careers didn't have to end after college. Soon the barriers to professionalism began to fall, and within two years of the Armistice the National Football League was born.
War Football explores for the first time this lost chapter of sports history and makes a direct connection between World War I and the founding of the NFL. Seven future Hall-of-Famers led the charge of more than 200 military veterans who played in, coached for, and shaped the character of the young league. Football fans, sports historians, and military historians alike will find this book a fascinating read.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    June 26, 2019

  • Formats

    • Kindle Book

      • ISBN: 9781538124857

    • OverDrive Read

      • ISBN: 9781538124857

    • EPUB ebook

      • ISBN: 9781538124857
      • File size: 35998 KB

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • Library Journal

      August 1, 2019

      In this impressively researched volume, journalist Serb (Sam's Boys: The History of Chicago's Leone Beach and Legendary Lifeguard Sam Leone) makes the plausible argument that the success of military service football during World War I prompted the establishment of the National Football League one year later. These games and teams demonstrated that fans would show up for post-graduate football that lacked college connections. Moreover, prominent figures such as Walter Camp and Gen. John J. Pershing expressed the view that football was useful in the training and fitness of soldiers, as well as providing men with a positive pursuit in their free time. Serb details the proliferation of service ball at U.S. military bases in 1917-18 while the army and navy were being assembled, and features extensive accounts of significant contests. Several soldiers who played service ball during the Great War would later play in the NFL, including George Halas, who would prove to be the driving force of the league for over 60 years as the founder and owner of the Chicago Bears. He and many other major players and coaches are profiled here. VERDICT For anyone interested in the early days of football and its interaction with the U.S. military, this book will prove to be a valuable reference.

      Copyright 2019 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Formats

  • Kindle Book
  • OverDrive Read
  • EPUB ebook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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