The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Two new books highlight Texas Football history
08.26.2005 | Football
Texas fans now have the opportunity to purchase a pair of new books detailing Longhorns history: "Texas Longhorns" by Bill Little and "Coach Royal - Conversations with a Texas Football Legend" by Darrell Royal with John Wheat.
"Texas Longhorns" by Bill Little
Heroes past and present, legends new and old, and never-before-told stories of the birth of the Big 12 and the Texas Longhorns' intriguing path to Dusty Mangum's game winning kick in the Rose Bowl...these are just a few of the characters and events featured in Bill Little's new book "Texas Longhorns" published by Globe Piquot Books as part of their national Stadium Stories series.
Little, whose writing is featured on The University of Texas athletics website Texassports.com as well as the Longhorns' football site Mack Brown-TexasFootball.com, has covered the Longhorns since he came to Texas as a student in 1960. He worked as a student for the UT athletics department and a writer for the Daily Texan, and joined the sports staff of the Austin American Statesman upon graduation in 1964.
After two years there, he became sports editor of The Associated Press bureau in Oklahoma City. In March of 1968, he returned to Texas as assistant sports information director. The 2005 season will be his 38th in the UT Athletics Media Relations department. He currently serves as Special Assistant to the Head Football Coach/Communications.
A winner of numerous national writing awards and co-author (with Longhorn football coach Mack Brown) of the popular "ONE HEARTBEAT-a philosophy of teamwork, life and leadership," Little weaves the story of Texas Longhorn football through nine chapters and numerous sidebars of new perspectives and little known facts.
You'll learn about Henry Reeves, at African American who served the team as a trainer in the early part of Texas football history. War heroes such as Louis Jordan, K. L. Berry and coach Jack Chevigny, and the building of Memorial Stadium are included.
The accomplishments, and the antics, of Bobby Layne are part of the era of D. X. Bible, and you will find out that Darrell Royal was putting on his tie to go meet John F. Kennedy when he learned that the President had been shot in Dallas.
From Al Jacks, who accidentally crushed the game ball, causing a 30 minute delay while folks rode horseback into town to get a new one, to Vince Young, whose heroics earned him the Most Valuable Player Trophy in the Rose Bowl victory over Michigan, Little tells the story with interesting anecdotes and features.
The Heisman winners-Earl Campbell and Ricky Williams-are also featured, as is Royal and his famed Wishbone offense.
It's a must read for any Longhorn football fan, and an excellent choice for sports fans in general. The book is part of Globe Piquot's series which has featured Stadium Stories books on both collegiate and professional teams from the Dallas Cowboys to the Michigan Wolverines.
Priced at $11.95, the book is available at Rooster Andrews Sporting Goods in Austin, as well as most book stores and literary web sites.
"Coach Royal - Conversations with a Texas Football Legend" by Darrell Royal with John Wheat
Many legendary men have been associated with University of Texas football, but for most fans one man will always be "Coach"-Darrell K Royal. One of the most successful coaches in college football, Royal led the Longhorns to three national championships and eleven Southwest Conference titles during his twenty years (1956-1976) as UT's head coach. He coached some of the Horns' best players, including future Heisman Trophy winner Earl Campbell, and was named NCAA Coach of the Year three times. In 1969, an ABC-TV poll of sportswriters called Royal the Coach of the Decade. In 1996 UT recognized his unrivalled contribution to Longhorn football when it designated Memorial Stadium the Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium in his honor.
Now, for the first time, Darrell Royal tells his life story in his own words. He remembers growing up poor in Hollis, Oklahoma, during the Great Depression, and describes playing college football for the University of Oklahoma and then coaching a succession of college teams and one pro team before settling in at UT for the rest of his career. He gives a fascinating, behind-the-scenes look at Longhorn football during his time-recruiting strategies, coaching techniques, the famous wishbone offense, unforgettable wins and losses, and his impressions of rival teams and coaches, including Bear Bryant of Texas A&M and Alabama and Frank Broyles of Arkansas.
Proving that he's still the same straight shooter as always, Darrell Royal even discusses some of the controversies he's dealt with, including early charges of racism in the UT football program, the impact of Title IX on college athletics, his association with Jim Bob Moffett and the Freeport-MacMoRan Corporation, his longtime friendship with Willie Nelson, and his decision to retire from coaching. But whether he's describing the tough times he's faced professionally and personally or the rewards of being UT's most beloved coach and goodwill ambassador, Royal maintains the same plainspoken honesty and sense of honor that-as much as the winning seasons-have made him a legend to so many people.
Darrell Royal has been Special Assistant to the President of the University of Texas since his retirement in 1976. He lives in Austin, where he is active in numerous community organizations.
John Wheat is a librarian, archivist, translator, historian, and lecturer at the Center for American History, University of Texas at Austin. He conducted the interviews with Darrell Royal contained in this book.
