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Keeping The Faith: In The Trenches With College Football's Worst Team
Every loser has a story. And few teams have lost quite like the Trinity Bible College football team. Located in Ellendale, North Dakota-population 1,559-Trinity produces preachers
and missionaries, but with an enrollment of only 310 students, struggles to find quality athletes. Keeping the Faith tells the remarkable story of the 2004 Trinity Bible College Lions, the worst college team in the country-a team fighting for victory and, more importantly, dignity.
Countless sports books have been written about championship teams and grand traditions. But what about teams on the other side of the scoreboard? How do those players and coaches fight
through ridicule, adversity, and defeat? This account is told through the eyes of a colorful group of characters, including Trinity's head coach, Rusty Bentley, a native Texan and former car salesman who says he moved his family to North Dakota because it was God's will. In his first game, Trinity lost 105-0.
Assistant coach Eric Slivoskey has traveled throughout the world, but he came to Ellendale seeking answers to his spiritual questions. A former high school star, he struggles to coexist with the Scriptures-quoting Bentley, whose knowledge of the Bible seems to dwarf his knowledge of football. Trinity's players, who number fewer than thirty, include Lee Odell, an all-conference center on the offensive line who's surrounded by teammates who didn't even play high school football. Wide receiver Andy Brower is training to be a pastor, but he doesn't
think the Lions should be relying on Jesus to help them on the field. Trinity's players keep taking the field week after week, loss after loss. They keep playing, always believing the next game will bring victory. Keeping the Faith is about football, faith, and finding small victories amidst big defeats.
and missionaries, but with an enrollment of only 310 students, struggles to find quality athletes. Keeping the Faith tells the remarkable story of the 2004 Trinity Bible College Lions, the worst college team in the country-a team fighting for victory and, more importantly, dignity.
Countless sports books have been written about championship teams and grand traditions. But what about teams on the other side of the scoreboard? How do those players and coaches fight
through ridicule, adversity, and defeat? This account is told through the eyes of a colorful group of characters, including Trinity's head coach, Rusty Bentley, a native Texan and former car salesman who says he moved his family to North Dakota because it was God's will. In his first game, Trinity lost 105-0.
Assistant coach Eric Slivoskey has traveled throughout the world, but he came to Ellendale seeking answers to his spiritual questions. A former high school star, he struggles to coexist with the Scriptures-quoting Bentley, whose knowledge of the Bible seems to dwarf his knowledge of football. Trinity's players, who number fewer than thirty, include Lee Odell, an all-conference center on the offensive line who's surrounded by teammates who didn't even play high school football. Wide receiver Andy Brower is training to be a pastor, but he doesn't
think the Lions should be relying on Jesus to help them on the field. Trinity's players keep taking the field week after week, loss after loss. They keep playing, always believing the next game will bring victory. Keeping the Faith is about football, faith, and finding small victories amidst big defeats.
211 pages, Hardcover
First published September 1, 2005
9 people want to read
About the author
Shawn Fury
3 books2 followersSHAWN FURY is an award-winning journalist who has written for newspapers in Minnesota and North Dakota, and is the author of Keeping the Faith: In the Trenches with College Football's Worst Team.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
October 4, 2013
A great book for anyone who enjoys a tale of struggle with a dash of hope. A hidden gem of a book.
November 7, 2023
Let us pray...
Shawn Fury's Keeping the Faith, a fantastic account of a college football team's woes and whines, its victories and values will have you caught up in the characters quicker than a five-yard slant pattern.
While Odessa, Texas glitters beneath Friday Night Lights, Trinity Bible College in Ellendale, North Dakota prepares for what will probably be another merciless clubbing by an Upper Midwest Athletic Conference opponent. Challenged by "method-to-the-madness" coaching, "AWOL footballs," and a losing streak as long as the North Dakota horizon, the Lions' football program is a recipe for disaster of epic proportions.
But, hallelujah, like Noah trusting God to save him from the Great Flood, the Lions have some semblance of faith, a sense that some good will come from simply staying on board with the program. Encouraged by the team's small (and expanding, thanks to Shawn Fury) fan base, which has the patience of Job, the Lions just may win a game-or at least a shred of dignity-even if it's against a struggling Christian Scientist team.
Buy the book, today. Amen!
Shawn Fury's Keeping the Faith, a fantastic account of a college football team's woes and whines, its victories and values will have you caught up in the characters quicker than a five-yard slant pattern.
While Odessa, Texas glitters beneath Friday Night Lights, Trinity Bible College in Ellendale, North Dakota prepares for what will probably be another merciless clubbing by an Upper Midwest Athletic Conference opponent. Challenged by "method-to-the-madness" coaching, "AWOL footballs," and a losing streak as long as the North Dakota horizon, the Lions' football program is a recipe for disaster of epic proportions.
But, hallelujah, like Noah trusting God to save him from the Great Flood, the Lions have some semblance of faith, a sense that some good will come from simply staying on board with the program. Encouraged by the team's small (and expanding, thanks to Shawn Fury) fan base, which has the patience of Job, the Lions just may win a game-or at least a shred of dignity-even if it's against a struggling Christian Scientist team.
Buy the book, today. Amen!
May 12, 2023
Decided to read it because my Dad was their quarterback at one point and this book was written shortly after he stopped playing. Great book!!
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews