SUNDAY'S FOOLS: Stomped, Tromped, Kicked and Chewed in the NFL

by Tom & George Kimball Beer ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 23, 1974

What it's like to be a loser in the AFC as told by a ""cocky, starry-eyed"" All-American tight end from the University of Houston. Drafted by Denver, Beer suffered through a 3-11 campaign his first year with the inexperienced, rookie-stocked Broncos (including a stretch of nine straight losses), his ego thrashed by scores like 51-0 and 34-2. A member of the hapless, veteran New England Patriots five years later, the author went through another nine game losing streak, with similarly embarrassing scores of 33-3 and 52-0. After seasons of ""splendid mediocrity. . . rich in futility,"" Beer spent a few weeks with the winning Dolphins before assuming his present post as a Director of Player Personnel in the WFL. Although at times the author doesn't give the impression of being a very serious athlete -- what with all those beer busts and ""drowning oneself in Coors"" -- such bashes appear to be par for the course in football, as routine for the huddle as the annual pimpled derriere contests. Beer's sense of frustration -- exacerbated as it was by seemingly justifiable gripes such as training camps which were either extra loose or ""Gestapo-like,"" medieval locker room facilities and scrimping organizations -- is not so overpowering that one cannot empathize with a career which kept punting down field. One of the few times when the armchair quarterback has more fun.

Pub Date: Sept. 23, 1974

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1974

Categories: NONFICTION