Read more
War Football reveals for the first time how World War I gave birth to the NFL. It tells the story of the army, navy, and marine teams that saved American football during the war, and shows how war football alumni, including star George Halas, broke down barriers to professionalism and helped launch the NFL shortly after the war ended.
List of contents
Acknowledgments
A Note on Names and Nicknames x
Prologue: "War Football"
1: George Halas Sees His Future
2: Walter Camp's Vision
3: Cupid Takes Aim at the Northeast
4: A True All-American at Camp Custer
5: Camp Sherman's March through Ohio
6: Beckett's Marines Conquer the West
7: Selling War Football
8: Brickley Kicks for Uncle Sam
9: Jock Sutherland's Fighting Dentists Head Down South
10: Frank Pollard, Omar Bradley, and Race in War Football
11: Coach Ike
12: The Cleveland Navy Battles Pop Warner
13: George Halas and the 1919 Rose Bowl
14: How Football Helped Win the War
15: The AEF Tournament
16: Peace and College Football's Golden Age
17: War Football and the Birth of the NFL
Epilogue
Appendix 1: War Football Players
Appendix 2: All-Service Teams, 1917-1919
Appendix 3: War Football Records
Notes
Bibliography
Index
About the Author
About the author
Chris Serb is an independent journalist who has written extensively for such publications as Chicago Tribune, Chicago History, Writer’s Digest, Chicago Athlete, and Men’s Fitness. He is the author of Sam’s Boys: The History of Chicago’s Leone Beach and Legendary Lifeguard Sam Leone (2000), whose profits were donated to charity. Serb was a finalist for Chicago Headline Club’s prestigious Peter Lisagor Award for Best Sports Feature in 2000.
