Perfect Season

In this sixth book of New York Times bestselling author Tim Green’s gripping Football Genius series, Troy must fight hard to win big. Perfect for fans of Mike Lupica. Troy's dreams of the big time have backfired. Sure, he's moved to New Jersey to start his new job as "genius" for the New York Jets, but his dad has taken his entire salary, leaving Troy and his mom broke. Instead of going to the private school of his dreams and playing for a football powerhouse, he's going to be part of a team with an unbroken losing streak. But Troy isn’t giving up without a fight. As soon as he convinces Seth to coach his public school team, Troy feels ready for a perfect season. But when his knack for calling plays slips and his abilities as a quarterback are threatened, he has to dig deep to prove all the naysayers wrong. And it will take all of Troy's football genius to get this team to a perfect season.

Kiley and Mansfield have co-authored this new book, which has been heralded variously as “an inspirational story of how faith, persistence, desire and brotherhood can make great things happen,” “recollections that the contributors all agree molded their lives while at the same time adding a valued quality of life for each of them,” “The story of young men coming of age in the sixties and how they continued the relationships throughout their lifetimes” and “those heady days of 1961...brought back to life from the unique perspective of the men on the field. I found it hard to put down and was left wanting more when I was finished.” Fontbonne University President emeritus Dr. Dennis C. Golden has written, “In 1961...legendary head football coach Mr. Joe Thomas, his staff and players committed themselves to actualizing their once-in-a-lifetime core value of becoming the first untied and undefeated team in Chaminade history.”

“[Freeman is] an excellent storyteller.” —Sports Illustrated The 1972 Miami Dolphins, under the expert leadership of legendary coach Don Shula, remain to this day the only team in the National Football League ever to enjoy a perfect season with no defeats and no ties. Now, 40 years after sports history was made, acclaimed sports writer Mike Freeman celebrates the Dolphins’ singular achievement in Undefeated. A riveting story filled with heartbreaking injuries, miraculous finishes, and tested relationships—featuring a roster of gridiron greats, including Bob Griese, Earl Morrall, Larry Csonka, Paul Warfield, Mercury Morris, Nick Buoniconti and others—Undefeated follows a underdog team on its remarkable run: 14 regular season victories, 2 postseason wins, and a Super Bowl championship. It is a book no football fan will want to miss.

Kenny Raines was a high school senior without a home life or a home. Jory Vaughn and Rayshawn Parks were best friends that were more like brothers. Grant and Lamar Kellaway were twin brothers that were more like best friends. They had one thing in common; their love of basketball and their superior talent for the game. All five freshmen ended up at Cal State Bakersfield where they took the college basketball world by storm. Coached by the one time NBA great, Todd Anderson, they had a season like no other . . . a Perfect Season.

An inspiring portrait of the extraordinary high-school football team whose quest for perfection sustains its hometown in the heartland The football team in Smith Center, Kansas, has won sixty-seven games in a row, the nation's longest high-school winning streak. They have done so by embracing a philosophy of life taught by their legendary coach, Roger Barta: "Respect each other, then learn to love each other and together we are champions." But as they embarked on a quest for a fifth consecutive title in the fall of 2008, they faced a potentially destabilizing transition: the greatest senior class in school history had graduated, and Barta was contemplating retirement after three decades on the sidelines. In Smith Center--population: 1,931--this changing of the guard was seismic. Hours removed from the nearest city, the town revolves around "our boys" in a way that goes to the heart of what America's heartland is today. Joe Drape, a Kansas City native and an award-winning sportswriter for The New York Times, moved his family to Smith Center to discover what makes the team and the town an inspiration even to those who live hundreds of miles away. His stories of the coaches, players, and parents reveal a community fighting to hold on to a way of life that is rich in value, even as its economic fortunes decline. Drape's moving portrait of Coach Barta and the impressive young men of Smith Center is sure to take its place among the more memorable American sports stories of recent years.

The 1987 NCAA championship football game between the Penn State Nittany Lions and the University of Miami Hurricanes is often considered the most memorable championship game in all of college football history. Both teams were undefeated going into the game, but the Hurricanes were heavily favored, as they had demolished each of their opponents during the regular season. Penn State pulled off of the most surprising upsets on January 2, 1987, by handing the University of Miami team its only loss of the season. The Perfect Season, with help from the Penn State players involved, Missanelli retells the story not just of this championship game but also of Penn States entire season. Beginning with its Orange Bowl loss in 1985, Missanelli recounts the glorious 1986 season through the eyes of those Penn State athletes. The book also focuses on the medias buildup of the national championship, explaining why the University of Miami team was considered the villain in this battle.

In 1964, the Evansville College Purple Aces raced undefeated through the Indiana Collegiate Conference, posting a perfect 24–0 regular-season record and winning the College Division NCAA championship. The skeleton of this season exists in newspaper archives and in books that capture the on-court action, but the flesh and blood has never been written—until now. This is the story of Russell Grieger, a starting guard, and his observations, feelings, reactions, and struggles of that season. It provides a game-by-game look into the team, showcasing Grieger's teammates, Coach Arad McCutchan, and Evansville's love for the Aces. The Perfect Season is an insider's inspiring story of a team whose motto—"If you're going to go, go big time or don't go at all"—inspired them to achieve their dream.

162-0: Imagine a Red Sox Perfect Season imagines that season by identifying the most memorable victory in Red Sox history on every single day of the baseball calendar season, from late March to late October. Ranging from games with incredible historical significance and individual achievement to those with high drama and high stakes, this book imagines the impossible: a blemish-free Red Sox season. Evocative photos, original quotes, thorough research, and engaging prose and analysis all highlight 162-0.

162-0: Imagine a Twins Perfect Season imagines that season by identifying the most memorable victory in Twins history on every single day of the baseball calendar season, from late March to late October. Ranging from games with incredible historical significance and individual achievement to those with high drama and high stakes, this book imagines the impossible: a blemish-free Twins season. Evocative photos, original quotes, thorough research, and engaging prose and analysis all highlight 162-0.

Imagining a year in which the New York Mets never lose a single game, this idealistic resource identifies the most memorable victory in the team's history on every single day of the baseball calendar season, from late March to late October. Ranging from games with incredible historical significance and individual achievement to those with high drama and high stakes, the book envisions the impossible: a blemish-free Mets season. Evocative photos, original quotes, thorough research, and engaging prose and analysis add another dimension.