EBOOK
About
As long as football is played, Joe Montana will be synonymous with the heart-pounding rally. Seemingly impervious to the pressure of a scoreboard deficit, the quarterback known as Joe Cool brought a steadying calm to every huddle, especially when the situation seemed especially dire. His reputation for miracles began to take root at the University of Notre Dame. In the 1979 Cotton Bowl, he overcame the flu, hypothermia and a 22-point deficit to lead the Fighting Irish to a stunning victory over Houston. This narrative continued in the NFL, as he engineered 31 fourth-quarter comebacks, including victories known in professional football lore as The Catch and The Drive, forever casting his career in a heroic glow.
In MONTANA, acclaimed author Keith Dunnavant sketches the definitive portrait of a man who repeatedly defied the odds, on and off the field.
While leading the San Francisco 49ers to four Super Bowl championships over a nine-year period, establishing a new standard for passing efficiency, and twice earning the league's Most Valuable Player award, Montana became the signature quarterback of the 1980s and one of the greatest ever to play the game. Overcoming his own limitations, which caused him to be underrated coming out of Notre Dame, he quickly mastered Bill Walsh's West Coast Offense, and thereby, helped reinvent offensive football.
But it was rarely easy. Like the rallies he so often produced, his life was filled with the sort of tension that made his journey seem routinely dramatic: The father who pushed him. The high school coach who challenged his commitment. The college coach who very nearly squandered him. The back surgery that almost ended his career. The younger athlete who tried to take his job.
Rich an anecdotal detail, insight and context, MONTANA is a powerful story about a man who was defined by his intense competitiveness, and how this intangibly helped him become one of the ionic figures in football history.
In MONTANA, acclaimed author Keith Dunnavant sketches the definitive portrait of a man who repeatedly defied the odds, on and off the field.
While leading the San Francisco 49ers to four Super Bowl championships over a nine-year period, establishing a new standard for passing efficiency, and twice earning the league's Most Valuable Player award, Montana became the signature quarterback of the 1980s and one of the greatest ever to play the game. Overcoming his own limitations, which caused him to be underrated coming out of Notre Dame, he quickly mastered Bill Walsh's West Coast Offense, and thereby, helped reinvent offensive football.
But it was rarely easy. Like the rallies he so often produced, his life was filled with the sort of tension that made his journey seem routinely dramatic: The father who pushed him. The high school coach who challenged his commitment. The college coach who very nearly squandered him. The back surgery that almost ended his career. The younger athlete who tried to take his job.
Rich an anecdotal detail, insight and context, MONTANA is a powerful story about a man who was defined by his intense competitiveness, and how this intangibly helped him become one of the ionic figures in football history.
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Reviews
"Dunnavant builds his portrait through research and dozens of personal interviews with those who have known Montana. Fans will remember Montana's triumphs in the NFL, but this thoroughly engaging volume also tells the less familiar story of Montana's early career and his battles with his high-school and college coaches, both of whom were slow to recognize Montana's talent. That changed in San Francisco, where Montana and coach Bill Walsh were the perfect match. That special relationship is portrayed skillfully in this carefully researched and fluidly written biography. Sure to be of interest in any sports collection."
Booklist
"The story of Joe Montana has been always been captured in moments frozen in time from "The Catch" to the laser to John Taylor to win Super Bowl XXIII. Because these memories have so long endured, we feel like we know Joe Montana. It turns out we don't. Until now. In "Montana" Keith Dunnavant paints a multi-dimensional picture of a man who is so much more than "Joe Cool." Through thorough research and extensive interviews, Dunnavant unlocks the real reason why the underrated kid from Pennsylvania became his generation's best quarterback and a cultural icon. The reason might surprise you."
Tony Barnhart, SEC Network
"America's Quarterback is a well-researched, deeply personal account of a college and NFL icon. Luckily for us Keith Dunnavant chose Bart Starr as a subject. This is a fascinating read."
Dennis Dodd, CBSSports.com on America's Quarterback