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Football. Chuck Klosterman.

Football.  Chuck Klosterman. Football has maintained a dominance over America and its culture for three quarters of a century. The game has changed considerably over time and continues to do so now particularly at the collegiate level.     All of the transactions may get one to ponder how long football can maintain its seemingly unbreakable hold as the most popular sport in the United States.      One author has done just that, Chuck Klosterman, and we can find out what he thinks and predicts in his latest book, Football .    Yes, this is the title.    It is blunt, concise and bland all at the same time.    However, content inside very likely belies the understated book heading.     Klosterman, an accomplished magazine writer and book author of more than 10 publications, expresses his vast knowledge of the sport and how his life was shaped and influenced at an early age by all that the game has to off...

The Magnificent Seven. Mark Mehler and Jeff Tiber II.

The Magnificent Seven.    College Basketball’s Blue Bloods.    Mark Mehler and Jeff Tiber II.    It seems fitting to have finished reading about seven different prominent college basketball programs on the eve of another march madness (March of 2026).     The Magnificent Seven , authored by Mark Mehler and Jeff Tiber II, argues their list of blue blood basketball programs and provides a rich history and culture of each school along with how they ascended to be considered among the elite programs. The opening section of the book discusses several criterions supporting their choices.    Readers will note that all schools chronicled here won at least four NCAA basketball championships.     Of course, some were more recent successes than others such as Kansas and Connecticut while others have not won a championship for several decades like Indiana or UCLA.    In any case, beyond the wins the total package in...

The Chuck Cooper Story. David Finoli and Chuck Cooper III

  The Chuck Cooper Story.   David Finoli and Chuck Cooper III Breaking Barriers.   As a mostly lifelong resident of the Pittsburgh area and a sports fan for just about all of those years it is not hard to come across many athletic stars in a variety of sports from one generation to the next.      When it comes to college basketball the region features three division one schools with plenty of history and great players that traversed the hardwoods of those programs.  One such program was Duquesne University; a school located on the bluff just outside the downtown Pittsburgh area.     The school has produced many notable players over the past 80 years but one in particular was a bit off of the radar that recently came to my attention.     In the book, The Chuck Cooper Story, his unique and interesting story is explained via the quality writing style of long-time western Pennsylvania author David...