Coach George Allen: A Football Life

by Lee Elder

How did legendary football coach George Allen (1918-1990) consistently build winning teams at both the college and professional levels? This first full-length biography examines his applied philosophy of coaching through comprehensive coverage of his tenures at the collegiate level. His stormy relationships with team owners are detailed, along with his historic divorce from the Chicago Bears. The two most important plays of Allen's career are analyzed. Appendices provide a list of Allen's NFL trades, his key draft picks, a statistical breakdown of his NFL offenses and a comparison with other top coaches of his era.

268 pages, Paperback

Published December 20, 2022

Reviews

[Pack Raven]

I started this book not knowing a lot about George Allen. I just knew that he was the guy who liked to sign a bunch of veterans to his teams. This book taught me that George Allen was so much more. He was an innovative coach, initiating a number of coaching methods that are used today. He was a master at evaluating talent.

Through a lot of interviews with former players and coaches who worked with Allen, the author tells a very compelling story about how it was to know George Allen. I highly recommend this book!

[Buck Weber]

Being a lifetime Rams fan, and very familiar with Coach Allen, this book was a great read that brought back a lot of childhood memories. Mr. Elder does a great job of bringing the reader into Allen's world, thought processes and strategies that made him one of the best coaches in the NFL, XFL and college. A book well worth your time to read if you are a true football fan.