Taliaferro: Breaking Barriers from the NFL Draft to the Ivory Tower (Quarry Books) | 
 enlarge | Author: Dawn Knight
Creator: Tony Dungy
Publisher: Indiana University Press
Category: Book
List Price: $24.95
Buy New: $10.90
You Save: $14.05 (56%)
New (29) Used (8) Collectible (1) from $10.51
Avg. Customer Rating:  2 reviews
Sales Rank: 876806
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 179
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 9.3 x 5.9 x 0.7
ISBN: 0253349311
Dewey Decimal Number: 796.332092
EAN: 9780253349316
ASIN: 0253349311
Publication Date: September 30, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Book Description
"Every African-American in the NFL today owes a debt of gratitude to George, and I am thrilled that his story is now finally being told." --from the Foreword, by Tony Dungy, Head Coach of the Indianapolis Colts George Taliaferro was a star player on Indiana University's first great football team of 1945, two years before Jackie Robinson broke baseball's racial barrier. Four years later, in 1949, he became the first African American drafted by the NFL when the Chicago Bears expressed their interest in him. Rather than play for his childhood dream team, Taliaferro opted to honor the contract he had previously signed with the Los Angeles Dons of the All American Football Conference. However, Taliaferro would eventually go on to play in the NFL for teams such as the New York Yanks, Dallas Texans, Baltimore Colts, and the Philadelphia Eagles. To prepare this book, Dawn Knight combed NCAA and NFL records and conducted numerous interviews with George Taliaferro, his family, former teammates, and Colts coach Tony Dungy. More than a biography of one individual, this is a story of historic achievement and inspiration.
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| Customer Reviews:
 Another Knight Has Been Heard From November 24, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Most people when they hear the name Knight think of former Indiana coach Bob Knight. Now Dawn Knight (no relation)has written a wonderfully researched and informative book about George Taliaferro. Taliaferro was the catalyst of Indiana University's only undefeated football team in 1945. As an African American in Bloomington, Indiana he faced numerous obstacles and through his own effort and support from President Herman B Wells, coach Bo McMillin, and numerous teammates Taliaferro not only led his team to a Big Ten Championship but opened doors to members of his race that were even more important. Knight chronicles Taliferros' life through professional football and his post football years in academia. Readers interested in Indiana University, football, civil rights, and the American dream will enjoy this book.
 All Sickness Ain't Death November 12, 2007
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
"All sickness ain't death", "May our complacency disturb us profoundly today", "Don't be damned, be something important" - Taliaferro's perspective on getting through and facing life's unjust challenges is the true inspiration of this story. Football serves as the catalyst and gives Knight's story an adrenaline rushed perspective into the development of America's new great past-time. I recommend this book to any football fan, as well as anyone seeking a good inspirational story about facing life's obstacles with integrity and even a little humor.
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