The Crunch [Paperback]

Patrick Toomay (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 22, 2001

A wry, witty look at life with the Dallas Cowboys during the heyday of Tom Landry and Roger Staubach, The Crunch shows the real life that makes legends and lacerates the Cowboys mechanistic corporate image, revealing a world that is both more and less than we expect, yet funnier than we could imagine.Peter Gent, author of North Dallas FortyMore characters than War and Peace. More laughs than Laugh-In...A pro football classic!Frank Luska, The Dallas Morning News

Editorial Reviews

Review

"More characters than War and Peace. More laughs than Laugh-In...a pro football classic!" -- Frank Luska, The Dallas Morning News

About the Author

Pat Toomay played in the NFL for ten years. He makes his home in South Salem, New York.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: iUniverse (March 22, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0595177948
• ISBN-13: 978-0595177943
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 6.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,658,931 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Pat Toomay was born in Pomona, California, the son of a career military officer. He found his way through the US military ethos via a career in professional football, playing ten years in the National Football League for such teams as the Dallas Cowboys and the Oakland Raiders. A series of wrenching personal experiences accompanied his professional ascent, ultimately depositing him at the feet of spiritual teachers who provided guidance. The perspective gained from these encounters informs his published work. He is the author of numerous articles about professional football, and two books: The Crunch and the novel On Any Given Sunday. "Clotheslined," his account of working with Oliver Stone, Y. A. Tittle and Jim Brown on Stone's football epic Any Given Sunday, was selected for inclusion in Houghton Mifflin's Best American Sportswriting 2000. Pat currently lives in New Mexico, where he enjoys the friendship of Acoma Pueblo spiritual elders Gilbert Concho and Becky Chino and his relationship with Tibetan Lama Karma Rinchen. Wandering New Mexico's charged terrain is an important pastime. He has two sons, Seth and John.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pro Football junkie? Gotta check this out, July 10, 2001

By 

T Jones (Omaha, NE USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Crunch (Paperback)

Back before the proliferation of true free-agency and multi-million dollar bonuses for rookies, pro football players were still real people. Former NFL defensive lineman Pat Toomay provides a yeoman's perspective on The NFL of the early 70's and debunks any idyllic image of the Dallas Cowboys, which had characteristics of an evil empire, presided over by Tom Landry, Gil Brandt, and Tex Scrhamm. Raunchy humor and blatant character assasination -- but it's all real and all hilarious. Roger Staubach in his underwear with a pair of babes?!?!? Classic stuff. Much more enjoyable than Pete Gent's fictitious Cowboy send-up "North Dallas Forty", this book ranks with Roy Blout, Jr.'s classic "About Three Bricks Shy of a Load" when it comes to getting inside a pro football team. Even a quarter of a century later, this is essential reading for the true pro football fan.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Inside the NFL, August 31, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: The Crunch (Paperback)

The Crunch is the best look into the life of an NFL player that I have ever read. If you are a fan of the NFL than you will be a big fan of this book. It is well written, and it gives a good graphic look into the life of an NFL player. I loved it, and i'll bet you'll like it too!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Crunch, August 16, 2010

By 

tom wuchina - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The crunch: An irreverent trip through the NFL, from rookie year to a world championship to the player's strike (Hardcover)

Pat Toomay is a genius who's exquisite prose mirrors his life through a metamorphosis of being a piece of meat nurtured through the Dallas Cowboy persona and into an intellectual giant. He is a mystic and a new world leader and he will keep you laughing through the adventures of his potent mind.