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THE DRAFT
“The Draft is a must for your own draft room.”
- Sports Illustrated.com
The NFL draft is the most closely followed sporting
event not involving an actual athletic contest.
Pete Williams explores this world from the inside
out, exposing the multi-layered feeding frenzy that swarms around America’s
top college players.
The Draft follows a handful of NFL hopefuls
through the ups and downs of the 2004 college football
season and the pre-draft process, culminating with
the 2005 draft. Among the prospects are Virginia defensive
end Chris Canty, who overcomes a devastating early-season
knee injury to re-establish himself as a top draft
hopeful, only to suffer a detached retina in a nightclub
skirmish; and Fred Gibson, a talented but rail-thin
Georgia wide receiver who struggles to put on the weight
needed to go over the middle in the NFL.
It’s a complex environment, with college coaches attempting to protect
their “student-athletes” from exploitation (while fully aware
that they can only remain competitive if they attract NFL-caliber players
to their schools), along with sports agents and NFL scouts trying to stay
a step ahead of their competition.
These parties provide a multiple-angled view of the world of emerging NFL
talent. The reader follows the season through the eyes of a host of power
players and scouts, from veteran agent Pat Dye Jr. to Jerry Maguire clone
Jack Scharf, to the coaching divisions of Florida State University and
the University of Virginia - headed by long-time Bill Parcells disciple
Al Groh.
Also central to the narrative are the Atlanta Falcons and executives Rich McKay
and Tim Ruskell (now with Seattle), who use a character-based evaluation system
to help set their draft board. These parallel stories weave
together, culminating in draft weekend, to create a gripping and fascinating
look at a world few see from the inside.
Click here to read an exclusive excerpt from "The Draft"
Click here for an author Q&A regarding "The Draft"
“This is the best inside account ever written about the NFL Draft and the
football counterpart to Michael Lewis’ Moneyball. Pete Williams
takes us into the NFL war rooms, to the homes of the NFL hopefuls, and behind
the scenes of the sports agent feeding frenzy. If you're a football fan and want
a fascinating and engaging inside look at the sport, you can't do much better
than The Draft.
-Peter Golenbock, bestselling author of
Cowboys Have Always Been My Heroes
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‘The Draft’ isn't for everyone; it's only for those who prefer
to know - who want to know - what goes on, why their sports world so often smells
the way it does. Pete Williams, as he has done throughout his career, applies good,
old-time journalism to provide a modern and important eye-opener.
-Phil Mushnick, sports columnist, New York
Post |
“Pete Williams has pulled off what everyone
promises and few produce: a true behind-the-scenes look at the
NFL draft. “The Draft” not only explains the constant
pressure that players, agents and talent evaluators face, but also
why the busts went so high and the sleepers so low.”
-Brian Kilmeade, co-host of Fox & Friends
and author of The Games Do Count |
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