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14th out of 20 books
—
7 voters
Scoreboard, Baby: A Story of College Football, Crime, and Complicity
The adjectives associated with the University of Washington’s 2000 football season—mystical, magical, miraculous—changed when Ken Armstrong and Nick Perry’s four-part exposé of the 2000 Huskies hit the newspaper stands: “explosive . . . chilling” (Sports Illustrated), “blistering” (Baltimore Sun), “shocking . . . appalling” (Tacoma News Tribune), “astounding” (ESPN), “jaw-...more
Paperback, 400 pages
Published
September 1st 2010
by Bison Books
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This is an excellent piece of investigative journalism (who knew that still even existed?) about the University of Washington's football program. The corruption was wide spread, involved university officials, law enforcement and even judges. Hard to fathom - yet we see what is apparently going to OSU currently - and we should not be surprised. It is about money . . . all about money. Any character weaknesses a coach, the staff or players possess will be tested to the nth degree in these big time...more
This is an outstanding work of investigative journalism which succeeds by skillfully intertwining several distinct narratives all centered on the year 2000 University of Washington men's football team. The cast of characters is a mix of scoundrels, heroes, and the largely indifferent, but what makes this book so important (and such a compulsive page-turner) is that it's all true, it's well-documented, and it's completely disheartening. The real scandal revealed in these pages is the ruthless pur...more
I guess I shouldn't really be shocked by the content of this book. Everybody knows that college sports is dirty and with the recent Penn State scandal nothing should be surprising. The only thing really surprising is just how aware the media and the coaches and the fans were of all the criminal acts done by the players and how they just accepted it. It made me rethink my role as a ran - if this were my team and I knew about it, would I justify it like they did? And I'm sure every school has thes...more
Wow! Oh wow! I decided to read Scoreboard Baby because of what is going on at Ohio State and the trouble they are in. This book is about the year 2000 football season at the University of Washington.
I didn't think it was going to be this good, but it is!! The stuff these guys got away with because they were football players made the Ohio State stuff look like kid's play. Rape, shooting, drugs, DUI all looked at the other way not only by the school, but the law as well--UNBELIEVABLE! Sad but true...more
I didn't think it was going to be this good, but it is!! The stuff these guys got away with because they were football players made the Ohio State stuff look like kid's play. Rape, shooting, drugs, DUI all looked at the other way not only by the school, but the law as well--UNBELIEVABLE! Sad but true...more
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"Scoreboard, Baby" takes a provocative look at the underbelly of a big-money college football program and the lengths to which coaches, administrators, local media and police will go to protect their "student-athletes."
Ken Armstrong chronicles the University of Washington's 2000 football season, when officials at many levels of local authority disregarded the arrests of dozens of football players during the Huskies' campaign for the prestigious Rose Bowl.
A chilling, compelling confluence of spor...more
Ken Armstrong chronicles the University of Washington's 2000 football season, when officials at many levels of local authority disregarded the arrests of dozens of football players during the Huskies' campaign for the prestigious Rose Bowl.
A chilling, compelling confluence of spor...more
This was a great piece of investigative journalism. It's one thing to intellectually know there's corruption in college football, but it's quite another to be presented with proof of it. I lived in the Seattle area for a lot of years, and Washington Husky football comes close to a religion for some. I remember when the series of Seattle Times articles that led to this book was published. Some of the more rabid followers of the purple and gold were quite vocal in their disdain for these author's...more
An amazing, depressing book about the realities of big-time college football. Great crime reporting about the Rick Neuheisel 2001 UW Huskies. Yes, folks, this is not atypical at that level. The concept of covering up for "important" college athletes is not that far from covering up for the misdeeds of an "important" college coach!!! Well-researched, a must-read for UW football fans--beware, it's painful! Ken Armstrong gave a talk, at Career day, to my 8th grade class in 2011, and was very engagi...more
Folks living in Seattle--you should read this book before you vote for Prosecuting Attorney Dan Satterberg. Ask him why he intervened in the prosecution of Husky football student athletes/rapists/attempted murders. You don't live in Seattle? That's ok--why don't you email him at Prosecuting.Attorney@kingcounty.gov. Oh, and his dead boss, sainted Norm Maleng? This is what he said about one of the player's rape victims, "I think what this case demonstrates is what we've always known...Excessive dr...more
This Edgar winner for True Crime is a riveting, sprawling account of the University of Washington's football team, the crimes committed by some of its players, the complicity of the University, the justice system and the press in covering them up - and, in a larger sense, the rot that pervades the heart of the college football system in general. Think of a Shakespeare tragedy set on the gridiron and you're not far off.
Despite the cast of characters in the front, it can be a little hard to keep t...more
Despite the cast of characters in the front, it can be a little hard to keep t...more
You just think that you know the underside of college football. This is raw, riveting and yes, revealing. Over a dozen of the players on the 2000 Washignton Huskies team coached by Rick Neuheisel were arrested -- and not much about any of it showed up in the press. All of the details are supported by reams of researched evidence -- just amazing. What's more, when I read some of the things these football players write, I get dumfounded about any of them got into college to begin with.
Sobering expose of the criminal thugs on the Husky football team in one season during the reign of Slick Rick. You'll never think of Husky football in the same way. Fortunately the author includes the story of Anthony Kelley, who, through sheer will power and underlying good character, picks himself up and makes something truly good of himself. Anyone who loves Husky sports needs to read this book, INCLUDING boosters.
Just demolishes the idea of student athletics. They don't exist. If you happen to play big-time college ball, you can essentially get away with anything. It chews up and spits out the UW football program, and in turn, all of NCAA athletics.
It is the best book on sports that I have ever read. It is also the best true crime book that I have ever read. It gives fresh meaning to the tired phrase, "a must-read."
Jan 07, 2012
Sydney
added it
Super interesting read--adds a whole new level of depth to all those Husky games I attended in the early 90s.
An excellent book that shows the total corruption of college football. No university is immune.
Oct 09, 2011
Laura
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Any college football fan.
Shelves:
kindle
As a college football fanatic I felt this was a must read. I am glad it was written about a team whose coach I detested rather than Nebraska who has had a bad double standard of their own. I don't think there is anything to be done about abuses like the ones exposed here because of the huge amounts of money that are involved.
I will go back to pretending ignorance until the end of the season and just enjoy the game.
It will be interesting to see what kind of trouble Rick N. can get into with the N...more
I will go back to pretending ignorance until the end of the season and just enjoy the game.
It will be interesting to see what kind of trouble Rick N. can get into with the N...more
Sad story about double standards for elite college athletes. Very good investigative reporting with many sources - a credible story.
Outstanding book. Eye-opening.
For all college sports fans...
I ran across this book in a magazine and thought it sounded interesting. The concept and information was alarming and informational. The writing itself was a bit all over the place but a "cast of characters" at the beginning helped in keeping everyone straight.
As far as the information part, wow. Makes you wonder about athletic programs at other schools...
As far as the information part, wow. Makes you wonder about athletic programs at other schools...
Sad, but interesting.
Sad that I was not the least bit shocked at how all of the crimes presented in the book were handled. I think our expectations of so-called "role models" need to be reevaluated.
A great read about college football today and the trend to overlook how the players do in their school work and how they behave off the field.
WOW...a story of horribly twisted priorities...as a diehard football fan, it raises questions about the machine that churns out athletes and at what cost to them and those they touch...Jerramy Stevens is evil...Rick Neuheisel is scum...almost everyone associated with the UW team, even indirectly has dirt on their hands...all that being said, it is an excellent piece of investigative journalism that reads very fluidly and presents excellent character development.
Jun 09, 2013
Kim Fox
marked it as to-read
May 25, 2013
Dan Lee
marked it as to-read
May 17, 2013
Ted Feder
marked it as to-read
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
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| College Football's Shortcomings | 1 | 6 | Jun 14, 2011 02:22pm |
