NCAA Books

this is a good book if your just learning to play lacrosse. I suggest that lacrosse moms sould get this book. It teaches you all you need to know.

This is a bunch of photocopied pages but will do the trick if you want to brush up or test your blue devils facts !1

This book, like they say, is "Chock full of information"! A really nice pamphlet type book of Every Record that you might want to know about Men's NCAA tournament Championships up to 1992. The part I enjoyed is at the end of the book that shows the full breakdown of ALL the colleges fighting during "March Madness". If anything....is there an update to this book?!? Still a nice book to get.

NCAA Football 08
This is a fantastic update to the previous version. The programmers have stepped up the clarity and the abilities of the players on the field. I must admit my style from the way I played NCAA 07 is basically a mirror on this new game as was the old one, but the overall presentation of this game is light years ahead of the last year's version.

I will admit that on a day when you just rather skip through the recruiting additions that take a tremendous amount more input I wish what is required was less. But, it must be said that this new game is a big jump from what was contained in NCAA 07.

This is a very informative book, but it's mainly geared for the Xbox 360 and PS3 games. There is some good info for the PS2 and Wii games.
It gives good explanations on gameplay and the different formations and plays for both offense and defense. It explains what formations and plays are good for certain situations.
The book breaks down all 120 FBS teams, offenses, defenses, formations used, favored plays, and impact players. It doesn't have the players names.
It's a good reference for the questions asked in the Campus Legend mode exams. Mascot names, team nicknames,trophies, etc.
Something like this in condensed form, and specific for each game console, should have been included in each game package.
It's not a must have, just a decent supplement for the serious NCAA Football game series fan.

A good book to have IF you follow college football VERY closely and intend to purchase the volume each year.

I found this book to be easy to read as far as rule books go. I have read many rule books on basketball (namely the high school, national federation rule book) and this one reads by far the easiest. Instead of reading like an outline, the book follows rules with plays of application, making it easier to picture the rule and its enforcement. I recommend this book for anyone from the official wanting to move up to referee the college game, or the fan who wants to increase his or her knowledge of the college game.

I was sorely disappointed by this book. So much so, that I never even finished it. I have devoured most of Feinstein's other books (except for "The Open". But this one just left me snoozing. I was simply amazed at how many times the book repeated previous stories or quotes. And not just once; the same story was repeated 3-4 times in some instances. It's as if the editor or author never read the book as a whole, only in parts.

Some of the stories were interesting, but overall this was not worthwhile.

I'm a college hoops fanatic, from small college to the big boys. I lost interest in the NBA quite some time ago so Feinstein's book was the perfect Christmas gift this year.

I read Feinstein's books for the wonderful tales he tells and his access to coaches, players, and in this book, referrees and committee members. I didn't think I'd be that intrigued with officials and administrators, but both chapters were excellent. I've covered and followed sports my entire life and I never knew how the NCAA selection committee worked until I read this book.

Though John can get a bit obsessed with Carolina and Duke, I did like his access into both programs. I find Roy Williams long journey to a title quite interesting. I'm not usually a Coach K fan, but he brought him to life. Of all the coaches, I found Tom Brennan the most interesting, he actually seemed like a normal guy, unlike some of the other ego-maniacs who lead that profession. And of course, the interviews with the players were excellent as was the insightful look at Bill Bradley and his Princeton years.

I also like how the author takes on the selection committee, big time TV, how the tourney has lost some of its charm, and the NCAA in general. I enjoyed his opinions, though I would've liked to have known just what Rolli Massimino did to get pushed out at Villanova, it's not like those guys have rung up a bunch of national titles to get this odd sense of entitlement. Feinstein never tells us just what Rolli did.

I do agree with some of the criticisms here, mostly the repetitiveness of his stories. I chalk that up to bad editing more than anything. And I believe the book could've closed in on 300 pages instead of 400, again, I believe John needs a new editor. But neither of those complaints were enough to have me downgrade this book.

As a college hoops nut, this was just what the doctor ordered.

Feinstein is one of the top sportswriters around. This book sadly does not showcase those skills.

The book is about the Final Four and the teams that made it in 2005. We get the usual background on players and coaches, but nothing that makes these stories particularly compelling. When I read a sports book, I want the author to take me there and show me the atmosphere or a unique view of the players' lives .

Sadly, this book is like 99% of the sports books out there. Feinstein may once have been great, but he's slipping.

I am an SAT tutor. One of my constant challenges is finding ways to encourage kids to read who'd rather do anything but. Books they actually like are a great first step. Feinstein's stories are gripping and accessible. They'll hook young readers who are more athletic than bookish, ideally making them a little more the latter. And, for anyone gripped by the love of a good sports contest or even just a good story, it's hard not to like Feinstein's works.

Last Dance is a behind the scenes look at the NCAA Final Four. The book is mostly built on reminisces and interviews with coaches, players, and even some announcers about what it's like to get to the Final Four and win a championship. The primary theme of the book is just how important getting to a Final Four is, and winning a National Championship is, for the players and coaches. It's something that for many players is a once in a lifetime opportunity to be part of team that puts its stamp on college basketball history. Whether a marginal player seeing little action or a star player going on to a successful NBA career, a Final Four appearance and a National Championship are seen as things that are lifetime achievements. And the bitter disappoint of losing in the Final Four lasts a lifetime as well.

For the most part this book is well written and interesting as we hear from players, coaches, and others involved about their experiences in the Final Four. It paints a well rounded picture of what participants go through during the course of the season, but especially during the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament. While Feinstein does not go into great depth on the history of the Final Four, its history is told throughout the book.

The one criticism this reader has of the book is it appears to be very Duke and North Carolina centric. While maybe that's because they have been to the Final Four so often, it's a bit off putting to be constantly hearing about these two schools at the expense of others who have made the Final Four. And while hearing different perspectives on the Final Four were interesting, there really wasn't anything new here either.

My two favorite sections of the book were about UCLA coach John Wooden and his wife getting a spontaneous standing ovation from the coaches in the lobby at the Final Four and Bill Bradley's thoughts on his Final Four appearance (Bradley was a Princeton and NBA star, later a Senator and presidential candidate). And the most interesting philosophical discussion was the impact of the tournament and a Final Four appearance or winning a championship on coaches. Would great coaches like Roy Williams of North Carolina have an incomplete legacy if they never won a championship? Fair or not, the answer is yes, even though the coaches don't like to say it. The pressure to win and win big is just as hot in college basketball as it is in professional sports, and coaches with great talent at big schools feel the heat. The impact of this pressure on coaches, while discussed in other areas before, was well done in this book. Finally, the hype and hysteria that surround the Final Four today compared to years ago is also interesting to note and how this sea change in attention and hype have affected players and coaches and those gathering for their Final Four appearance is well done.

This is definitely a book worth reading if you are a college basketball fan.

Please don't support Coach K and his annual mediocre basketball team that wins through quiet help from officals; its a joke and supporting Duke by purchasing this media propaganda only worsens the fact that Arizona should have won that year (not to mention the other fact that Duke should not have been in the national championship game to begin with). I welcome all arguers in support of Duke because the facts say you will lose the argument every single time.

Kind of sappy writing but it was great fun to follow the 2001 year and hear some of Coach K's strategies and his take on each of the players. He described each game from that year and that was fun for me because I remember almost all of them.

I was going to flush this book down a toilet; however, I began to think that flushing the book would be disrespectful to the floating excrement. The only true way to enjoy this book is to rip out the contents, page by page, and then burn each one in effigy. I want to hear about Duke's championship season like I want to hear about a terrorist attack. He opens the book by name dropping, then name dropping some more, followed by name drops. I couldn't make it past the third page before my gag reflex kicked in and I started to salivate. I would soon lose my Chalupa. If you are still interested in reading this book, keep an extra bottle of Kaopectate on hand, as well as an apology letter to your dry cleaner.

I am sorry to admit this book is a fake. The national championship is a Fake also. dook cheated and still cheats to this day. In our team meetings we voted on a team mvp - The Officials. Thanks guys. Thanks Hess, Edsell and the rest of you guys.

Why buy this book, everyone knows that Duke paid the officials in the Maryland game and the Arizona game. The real story should be how the nation was cheated out of the real championship game Maryland v. Arizona.

For all Maryland Terps, past and present, the 2001-2002 basketball season was a magical one to follow. It marked the culmination of years of hard work and overcoming almost insurmountable odds by both coach Gary Williams and star guard Juan Dixon. "Sweet Redemption" tells the tale of the separate, yet similar, journeys these two men took, along with the Maryland basketball program, to overcome tremendous hardships and reach the summit of excellence with the 2002 NCAA National Title. Gary Williams came from a broken home to become hard driven coach and successful coach at the expense of his own marriage and estrangement from his daughter. Williams returned to his alma mater, University of Maryland, to coach the men's basketball team in 1989, just in time for all the bad blood of Len Bias' death from cocaine and subsequent recruiting violations to cripple the Terrapin program in a way that made it impossible to win (or even get fan and university support) in those first few years. Juan Dixon came from a harsher background. His parents, while bright and intelligent people, were caught in the vice grip of heroin addiction. They were in and out of prison through most of Juan's young life and he was shuttled from family member to family member to be cared for (a role that mostly fell to his older brother Phil). Though his parents finally cleaned up, the damage was done and they died from HIV-related complications brought about by using dirty heroin needles. Prior to his death, Juan's father made saw to his that his brother looked after Juan and made sure he got his education. Basketball was an escape for both Juan Dixon and Gary Williams. So, it would make sense that the two would come together and help each other achieve the highest level of success possible.

"Sweet Redemption" does give some details into backgrounds of Williams and Dixon, but, at 252 pages, it is understandably superficial in its overall treatment of the subject. Additionally, the progress of the Maryland basketball program from a being nearly dismantled to winning the National Title over 13 seasons is given a perfunctory treatment. All things considered, though, this deficiency does not detract from the overall impact of the book. There is a list of sources in the back of the book that give reference to more in-depth material on which this book is based. "Sweet Redemption" is designed to be a quick study and companion piece of the championship season for fans to ready and enjoy while they get re-energized for the upcoming season.

i rated this four out of five becouse i
didn't fully grssed the intoto of your information
about the issue bein discussed there from ma point of view
as a reader.

Sweet Redemption is the well-told story of how a very good and very dedicated coach and some very good and very dedicated players -- whom most other schools overlooked -- finally brought the NCAA Division I men's basketball championship to the University of Maryland. Like the movie Hoosiers, it should be of interest to all basketball fans -- indeed all sports fans. But it will be a special treasure to supporters of Maryland basketball who for years watched their generally quite good teams suffer one frustration after another. Maryland's 2002 basketball championship was indeed sweet redemption which all true sports fans should be able to savor.

Anyone who loves the underdog has to love Gary Williams. He has bounced back time and again over the course of his career and faced tremendous odds. Winning the National Championship was truly Sweet Redemption for him.

However, this is quite possibly one of THE WORST BOOKS I HAVE EVER READ. As a voracious sports biography reader, this book falls short of the mark made by even the lesser sports books out there. Vise did a TERRIBLE job of accounting the situation. This book is DEVOID of any passion on his part. It reads as if a high school journalism student slapped it together using a simple writing formula : "Here is what happened", , "Review what I just told you again."

You could get the ENTIRE contents of this book by reading newspaper clippings from Gary's career. That's basically all this book is, one big newspaper clipping.

Gary Williams deserves a much better book than this one.

This is the story behind the 2002 University of Maryland basketball championship season and also serves as mini-biographies of Gary Williams, Juan Dixon, and the University of Maryland basketball program. Very well written and organized, it will be interesting for sports fans, even those not U. of Maryland fans. The many tragedies suffered by the institution and individuals associated with the program are heart rending and compelling.

The Maryland championship season is a real life triumph over tragedy story. Regardless of where one's rooting interests lie, I dare say nobody can read Juan Dixon's story and not marvel at his perseverance and leadership. A true, shining example of heart and courage.