ESPN College Football Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Game 
asked by jdog on November 21, 2006 6:15 AM
The most comprehensive reference book ever assembled on the history of college football From South Bend, Indiana, to Lincoln, Nebraska, Palo Alto, California, to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Ann Arbor, Michigan, to Tallahassee, Florida, college football attracts the most dedicated fans in all of sports. This book is their Biblea rich and exhaustive reference guide to the games history, tradition, and lore. Based on three years of research by the nations foremost college football experts, the book features: lCapsule histories for each of the Division 1-A programs, the Ivy League schools, and the historically black colleges lYear-by-year schedules and scores for each school lStatistical leaders from each school lFight-song lyrics lBox scores for every bowl game ever played lWeekly AP and UPI polls dating back to 1936 lA four-color insert illustrating the evolution of each schools helmet design lEssays by the games top wordsmiths, including Dan Jenkins, Beano Cook, Chris Fowler, and more. lAnd a lively round-table discussion on the state of the game with ESPNs popular GameDay team (Fowler, Lee Corso, and Kirk Herbstreit). Packed with tables and charts and designed in an easy-to-read style, the ESPN College Football Encyclopedia is sure to dazzle even the most knowledgeable fan.
Reviews
0%
0%
The words "must have" are used liberally by Amazon.com's reviewers. But few products are deserving of being called a "must have'. This book is one of them.
The book's shortcomings (some editing and accuracy issues) are well-documented by other reviewers. I have no doubt these will be corrected in future editions (in fact, ESPN invites readers to send in their comments and corrections). But to me, these problems are like college football itself with its flawed attempts to determine its national champion (I am, of course, referring to I-A college football). The problems do not detract from a great product.
What this book achieves is remarkable. The full flavor of what makes college football the best sport in the world are here--the traditions, the rivalries, the larger than life personalities, the arguments that never lose their potency despite the passage of time. The fact that every season of every team is documented alone makes the book worth the hefty price. How cool to go back to games you attended as a kid and think about them anew as an adult. The book is never out of reach during the season and it helps fill the gaps between seasons. It's a great achievement written by college football fans for college football fans.
The book's shortcomings (some editing and accuracy issues) are well-documented by other reviewers. I have no doubt these will be corrected in future editions (in fact, ESPN invites readers to send in their comments and corrections). But to me, these problems are like college football itself with its flawed attempts to determine its national champion (I am, of course, referring to I-A college football). The problems do not detract from a great product.
What this book achieves is remarkable. The full flavor of what makes college football the best sport in the world are here--the traditions, the rivalries, the larger than life personalities, the arguments that never lose their potency despite the passage of time. The fact that every season of every team is documented alone makes the book worth the hefty price. How cool to go back to games you attended as a kid and think about them anew as an adult. The book is never out of reach during the season and it helps fill the gaps between seasons. It's a great achievement written by college football fans for college football fans.
reviewed by ozone on November 25, 2006 8:05 AM
0%
0%
This work represents a huge research project covering nearly 1700 pages of
crowded text. It is sort of a biblia for college football. It covers
All-time scores, Heisman voting, program profiles, best players and coaches
dating back to 1869 in some cases. This publication is for the discriminating statistics gatherer of college football facts. It covers
a plethora of leagues and programs including important history on
African American teams. The acquisition would be a perfect gift for the
college student in your house. Every college football coach should own one!
Some reviewers have noted imperfections; however, the subject matter is so
extensive that virtually any work on the subject of college football would
be incomplete in one aspect or another. The acquisition is a good value
for the depth and quality of the information contained.
crowded text. It is sort of a biblia for college football. It covers
All-time scores, Heisman voting, program profiles, best players and coaches
dating back to 1869 in some cases. This publication is for the discriminating statistics gatherer of college football facts. It covers
a plethora of leagues and programs including important history on
African American teams. The acquisition would be a perfect gift for the
college student in your house. Every college football coach should own one!
Some reviewers have noted imperfections; however, the subject matter is so
extensive that virtually any work on the subject of college football would
be incomplete in one aspect or another. The acquisition is a good value
for the depth and quality of the information contained.
reviewed by officefan on November 25, 2006 9:46 PM