First published 2013
College football stands at a crossroads between tradition and money. John U. Bacon embeds himself in four Big Ten programs to examine what threatens the sport's core values. He watches coaches break down game film, sits at training tables, and listens to locker room conversations at Penn State, Ohio State, Michigan, and Northwestern. Bacon talks with everyone from tailgating fans to university presidents, spending months with the young athletes who carry the game's future. His investigation reveals how money transforms everything around the players, who remain the truest defenders of the student athlete ideal. The book captures private moments: teams confronting their athletic directors, defensive linemen mastering theoretical math, Urban Meyer building loyalty among Ohio State's Buckeyes during their perfect season. It shows Michigan's administration threatening the traditions that separate college football from professional sports. At Northwestern, Bacon witnesses the Wildcats' first bowl victory in decades while honoring academic excellence. Most powerfully, he uncovers the untold story of Penn State players who joined Coach Bill O'Brien to rescue their program after scandal nearly destroyed it.
Genres: sports, non-fiction, true-crime, college, academic, american-history
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family
Setting: Michigan, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State
Period: 21st-Century
343 pages · Hardcover · Simon & Schuster