The Fifty-Year Seduction: How Television Manipulated College Football, from the Birth of the Modern NCAA to the Creation of the BCS (Hardcover)

by Keith Dunnavant (Author) "Inside a crowded, smoke-filled Dallas hotel ballroom on a dreary day in January 1951, retired Admiral Thomas J. Hamilton grabbed a mike and rallied his..." (more)
Key Phrases: college sports establishment, major football schools, televised college football, Notre Dame, Big Ten, Big Eight (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"As there have been Kremlinologists, so Keith Dunnavant must be the first certified NCAA-ologist. The work is thoroughly researched, carefully told, and absolutely brimming with fools and villains."
- Frank Deford

"If you think college football has sold its soul, Keith Dunnavant has news for you. He knows when the sale was made and for how much. Clearly and painstakingly, Dunnavant tracks the crime across decades. Anyone who cares about college athletics should memorize every word of this cautionary tale."
- David Kindred, columnist for The Sporting News

"Required reading for anyone who wants to know the real story involving television and college football. A book that's long overdue."
- Gene Wojciechowski, columnist for ESPN Magazine

"For anyone who follows college football, Dunnavant's book is substantive yet entertaining enlightenment."
- Ed Hinton, author of Daytona

Product Description
ver the last half century, television has been the common denominator in college football's rise from sport to big business. In this groundbreaking book, the author connects the dots to show how television manufactured money, greed, and envy; altered the recruiting process; aided the NCAA's explo-sion from impotent union to massive bureaucracy; seized control of the bowl games, leading to the enormously lucrative and con-tro-versial Bowl Championship Series; and fomented the realign-ment of conferences, including the highly publicized 2002 battle for teams between the ACC and Big East.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books; 1st edition (September 9, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 031232345X
• ISBN-13: 978-0312323455
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #496,499 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Should be read by all True College Football Fans, December 31, 2004

By	R. Spell "raspell" (Memphis, TN USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This is a well written, well researched book on the relationship of TV and college football. While I was aware of the significant ruling in the 80s when Georgia and Oklahoma as a test case for the CFA were allowed to televise away from the standard one game a week on ABC, I was not aware that the outcome was more games but significantly lower TV revenue. This was the most significant development of the past 50 years with the next big move being the bowl tie-ins and increased revenue available from the BCS bowls in the 90s.

But what this author did such a good job of was detailing the personalities involved with the NCAA and how that dictated how TV contracts were negotiated up until the 80s. Some fallout of those relationships is what led to the later mess in TV rights fees.

Having worked on a fundraising board with a 1-A College athletic program, this is a must read that I would recommend for any athletic administrator or diehard fan. I find it interesting that this book has been out three months and it hasn't been reviewed. I suspect that means that not many college football fans also read books. Or maybe it means they don't use Amazon. Irrespective, do yourself a favor and read this book if you enjoy the game of college football.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent book and a source of information for my own book!, July 31, 2005

By	BCS Busters "Author of "The Grass Ain't B... (Bend, Oregon - USA) - See all my reviews

While watching Texas coach Mack Brown gleefully accept the final BCS nomination this past bowl season, I mentioned to my wife that someone should write a book uncovering the history behind the BCS shams we consistently witness from year-to-year. My wife suggested I write it as I have been involved in high school, collegiate and professional sports for the majority of my life. Little did I know, that Keith Dunnavant had already written a book which uncovered the information I was searching for. While I have utilized and referenced a lot of his material for the evolution of the BCS chapters within my book, my book takes serious aim at uncovering the east-coast / west-coast bias issues and the rift that occurs between the BCS and non-BCS conferences. I also offer a lesser restrictive alternative as a solution to the BCS woes.

Nonetheless, his book is outstanding and was a major inspiration and source of history for my own project. I recommend this book to anyone who aspires to understand the BCS controversy and ultimately how the fans can change the system so it is more equitable and fair to all Division I-A programs. Keith's book - The Fifty Year Seduction - will fascinate, inspire and enrich your college football knowledge, perspective and understanding of the many controversies, scandals and methods of corruption.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars So that's why college football is so bizarre, January 14, 2005

By	G. L. Jones "luke" (Portland,OR United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book is absolutely essential reading for anyone who is interested in the business of college football. Even if you are just a casual college football fan, this book is pretty easy to read and helps explain a lot of things, like how Notre Dame can remain outside of the conference system and why the post season is so chaotic.

If there is any short-coming, it might be that the book focuses a little too much on the internal management of the NCAA, especially the consolidation of power that occurred under Wally Byers. But, in the end, this is such a gigantic subject that it had to have some kind of hook.