Making March Madness
The Early Years of the NCAA, NIT, and College Basketball Championships, 1922-1951 (Sport, Culture, and Society)
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Making March Madness
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Narrated by:
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Chris Snee
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By:
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Chad Carlson
About this listen
Throughout the NCAA Tournament’s history, underdogs, Cinderella stories, and upsets have captured the attention and imagination of fans. Making March Madness is the story of this premiere tournament, from its early days in Kansas City, to its move to Madison Square Garden, to its surviving a point-shaving scandal in New York and taking its games to different sites across the country.
Chad Carlson’s analysis places college basketball in historical context and connects it to larger issues in sport and American society, providing fresh insights on a host of topics that listeners will find interesting, illuminating, and thought-provoking.
The book is published by The University of Arkansas Press. The audiobook will be published by University Press Audiobooks.
“A well-written and entertaining addition to the tomes on the rise of college basketball to become today’s March Madness. (Journal of Sport History)
“Informative and enjoyable...will be of use to scholars and aficionados alike.” (Murry Nelson, author of Big Ten Basketball, 1943-1972)
“An engaging listen.” (Choice)
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Glory Days
- The Summer of 1984 and the 90 Days That Changed Sports and Culture Forever
- By: L. Jon Wertheim
- Narrated by: Chris Abell
- Length: 9 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 114
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 100
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 99
The summer of 1984 was a watershed moment in the birth of modern sports when the nation watched Michael Jordan grow from college basketball player to professional athlete and star. That summer also saw ESPN’s rise to media dominance as the country’s premier sports network and the first modern, commercialized, profitable Olympics. Magic Johnson and Larry Bird’s rivalry raged, Martina Navratilova and John McEnroe reigned in tennis, and Hulk Hogan and Vince McMahon made pro wrestling a business, while Donald Trump pierced the national consciousness as a pro football team owner.
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5 out of 5 stars
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A great sports summer
- By Hebern on 07-06-21
By: L. Jon Wertheim
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The League
- How Five Rivals Created the NFL and Launched a Sports Empire
- By: John Eisenberg
- Narrated by: Daniel Thomas May
- Length: 11 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 291
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 265
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 265
The National Football League's current dominance has obscured how professional football got its start. In The League, John Eisenberg reveals that Art Rooney, George Halas, Tim Mara, George Preston Marshall, and Bert Bell took an immense risk by investing in the professional game. At that time, the sport barely registered on the national scene. The five owners succeeded only because at critical junctures in the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s, each sacrificed the short-term success of his team for the longer-term good of the League.
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5 out of 5 stars
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what a great book. loved it completely.
- By Daniel Mosca on 11-08-18
By: John Eisenberg
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Tanking to the Top
- The Philadelphia 76ers and the Most Audacious Process in the History of Professional Sports
- By: Yaron Weitzman
- Narrated by: Yaron Weitzman
- Length: 9 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 183
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 155
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 154
When a group of private equity bigwigs purchased the Philadelphia 76ers in 2011, the team was both bad and boring. Attendance was down. So were ratings. The Sixers had an aging coach, an antiquated front office, and a group of players that could best be described as mediocre. Enter Sam Hinkie - a man with a plan straight out of the PE playbook, one that violated professional sports' Golden Rule: You play to win the game.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Great history of tanking by Sixers
- By Alan Bernstein on 03-11-23
By: Yaron Weitzman
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The "Down Goes Brown" History of the NHL
- The World's Most Beautiful Sport, the World's Most Ridiculous League
- By: Sean McIndoe
- Narrated by: Sean McIndoe
- Length: 7 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 239
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 228
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Story5 out of 5 stars 227
Sean McIndoe of Down Goes Brown, one of hockey's favorite and funniest writers, takes aim at the game's most memorable moments - especially if they're memorable for the wrong reasons - in this warts-and-all history of the NHL.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Fun, fascinating education in hockey history
- By D. Trull on 03-27-19
By: Sean McIndoe
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Baseball
- A History of America's Game
- By: Benjamin G. Rader
- Narrated by: Joe Barrett
- Length: 12 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 45
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 41
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 41
A succinct history of baseball, newly revised and updated. In this third edition of his lively history of America's game, widely recognized as the best of its kind, Benjamin G. Rader expands his scope, covering record crowds and record income, construction of new ballparks, a change in the strike zone, a surge in recruiting Japanese players, and an emerging cadre of explosive long-ball hitters. The book is published by The University of Illinois Press.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Good book!
- By Judy Ellis on 04-15-18
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Homegrown
- How the Red Sox Built a Champion from the Ground Up
- By: Alex Speier
- Narrated by: George Newbern
- Length: 10 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 77
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 70
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 70
The 2018 season was a coronation for the Boston Red Sox. The best team in Major League Baseball - indeed, one of the best teams ever - the Sox won 108 regular season games and then romped through the postseason, going 11-3 against the three next-strongest teams baseball had to offer. As Alex Speier reveals, the Sox’ success wasn’t a fluke - nor was it guaranteed. It was the result of careful, patient planning and shrewd decision-making that allowed Boston to develop a golden generation of prospects - and then build upon that talented core to assemble a juggernaut.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Great read if you like the Red Sox or baseball ops
- By Amazon Customer on 01-11-20
By: Alex Speier
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Raise a Fist, Take a Knee
- Race and the Illusion of Progress in Modern Sports
- By: John Feinstein, Doug Williams
- Narrated by: John Feinstein
- Length: 10 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 92
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 82
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Story5 out of 5 stars 80
Based on dozens of shocking interviews with some of the most influential names in sports, this is the urgent and revelatory examination of racial inequality in professional athletics America has been waiting for. With an encyclopedic knowledge of professional sports, and shrewd cultural criticism, John Feinstein uncovers not just why, but how, pro sports continue to perpetuate racial inequality.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Another Feinstein triumph
- By Glenn Canning on 12-06-21
By: John Feinstein, and others
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The Real Madrid Way
- How Values Created the Most Successful Sports Team on the Planet
- By: Steven G. Mandis
- Narrated by: Charles Constant
- Length: 8 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 60
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 54
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 54
Real Madrid is the most successful sports team on the planet. The soccer club has more trophies than any other sports team, including 11 UEFA Champions League trophies. However, the story behind the triumph goes beyond the players and coaches. Generally unnoticed, a management team consisting mostly of outsiders took the team from near bankruptcy to the most valuable sports organization in the world. How did Real Madrid achieve such extraordinary success? Columbia Business School adjunct professor Steven G. Mandis investigates.
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1 out of 5 stars
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awful
- By Jonathan Frye on 11-13-24
By: Steven G. Mandis
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Scorecasting
- The Hidden Influences Behind How Sports Are Played and Games Are Won
- By: L. Jon Wertheim, Tobias Moskowitz
- Narrated by: Zach McLarty
- Length: 9 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 228
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 169
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Story4 out of 5 stars 169
Drawing from Moskowitz's original research, as well as studies from fellow economists such as bestselling author Richard Thaler, the authors look at: the influence home-field advantage has on the outcomes of games in all sports and why it exists; the surprising truth about the universally accepted axiom that defense wins championships; the subtle biases that umpires exhibit in calling balls and strikes in key situations; the unintended consequences of referees' tendencies in every sport to "swallow the whistle," and more.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Fascinating book!
- By Wayne on 10-22-16
By: L. Jon Wertheim, and others
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The Gipper
- George Gipp, Knute Rockne, and the Dramatic Rise of Notre Dame Football
- By: Jack Cavanaugh
- Narrated by: Nancy Linari
- Length: 9 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 54
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 48
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 48
Win one for The Gipper. Has there ever been a better-known and widely-used exhortative phrase in sports? Not likely. But who was the "Gipper", this mythical-like sports figure whose nickname has aroused, in turn, awe, wonderment, curiosity, and amusement since the second decade of the 20th century, and why is his story important? Answering those questions is the formidable task taken on here by veteran sportswriter Jack Cavanaugh.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Not sure why my grade 1 teacher was reading this
- By Thomas on 07-23-13
By: Jack Cavanaugh
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Scribe
- My Life in Sports
- By: Bob Ryan
- Narrated by: Bob Ryan
- Length: 11 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 83
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 73
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Story4 out of 5 stars 75
Ever since he joined the sports department of the Boston Globe in 1968, sports enthusiasts have been blessed with the writing and reporting of Bob Ryan. Tony Kornheiser calls him the "quintessential American sportswriter". For the past 25 years, he has also been a regular on various ESPN shows, especially The Sports Reporters, spreading his knowledge and enthusiasm for sports of all kinds.
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2 out of 5 stars
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No my idea of a memoir
- By Michael Friedman on 12-19-14
By: Bob Ryan
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From Darkness to Dynasty
- The First 40 Years of the New England Patriots
- By: Jerry Thornton
- Narrated by: Chris Andrew Ciulla
- Length: 13 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 134
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 121
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 122
From Darkness to Dynasty tells the unlikely history of the New England Patriots as it has never been told before. From their humble beginnings as a team bought with rainy-day money by a man who had no idea what he was doing, to the fateful season that saw them win their first Super Bowl, Jerry Thornton shares the wild, humiliating, unbelievable, and wonderful stories that comprised the first 40 years of what would ultimately become the most dominant franchise in NFL history.
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5 out of 5 stars
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great narration, great book
- By BenRias on 01-25-18
By: Jerry Thornton
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Players
- The Story of Sports and Money - and the Visionaries Who Fought to Create a Revolution
- By: Matthew Futterman
- Narrated by: George Newbern
- Length: 9 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 47
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 43
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Story4 out of 5 stars 43
For fans of Michael Lewis, the astounding untold story of how professional sports transformed, in the span of a single generation, from a cottage industry into a massive global business. In the cash-soaked world of contemporary sports, where every season brings news of higher salaries, endorsement deals, and television contracts, it is mind-boggling to remember that as recently as the 1970s elite athletes earned so little money that many were forced to work second jobs in the off-season to make ends meet.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Starts slow...
- By John on 08-09-16
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America's Quarterback
- Bart Starr and the Rise of the National Football League
- By: Keith Dunnavant
- Narrated by: Jay Snyder
- Length: 13 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 34
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 32
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Story5 out of 5 stars 32
No one can touch Bart Starr's record setting 5 NFL Championships including 3 straight. America's Quarterback tells the story of the man who helped create the legend of Vince Lombardi and the Green Bay Packers. This biography traces Starr’s life from childhood in Alabama to stardom in Green Bay and beyond. Not a simple sports story, Dunnavant traces the story of one man reaching for the American dream while professional football emerged from the shadows to capture the nation’s imagination.
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5 out of 5 stars
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awesome
- By Anthony nyman on 03-30-15
By: Keith Dunnavant
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The Yucks
- Two Years in Tampa with the Losingest Team in NFL History
- By: Jason Vuic
- Narrated by: Patrick Lawlor
- Length: 7 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 56
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 49
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 49
Long before their first Super Bowl victory in 2003, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers did something no NFL team had ever done before and that none will ever likely do again: They lost 26 games in a row. It started in 1976, in their first season as an expansion team, and it lasted until the penultimate game of the 1977 season, when they defeated Archie Manning and the New Orleans Saints on the road. It was the beginning of a new streak for a team that had come to be called "The Yucks".
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5 out of 5 stars
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Fun Listen
- By Dan Junevicus on 08-10-24
By: Jason Vuic
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The Perfect Pass
- American Genius and the Reinvention of Football
- By: S. C. Gwynne
- Narrated by: Santino Fontana
- Length: 8 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 370
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 321
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Story5 out of 5 stars 322
New York Times best-selling, award-winning historian S. C. Gwynne tells the incredible story of how Hal Mumme and Mike Leach - two unknown coaches who revolutionized American football in the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s - changed the way the game is played at every level, from high school to the NFL. Hal Mumme is one of a handful of authentic offensive geniuses in the history of American football. In 2015 ESPN Magazine, the nation's leading sports magazine, called him the single most influential football coach in the last quarter century.
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3 out of 5 stars
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The Perfect Pass
- By Little Pecan on 09-29-16
By: S. C. Gwynne