Hail Victory: An Oral History of the Washington Redskins [Paperback]

Thom Loverro (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 31, 2007

A you-are-there history of one of football's most successful and beloved teams

Who is the greatest quarterback in Redskins history? Baugh? Jurgensen? Theismann? Rypien? However you answer that question, you'll find plenty of evidence to support your argument in Hail Victory. Based on sportswriter Thom Loverro's exclusive interviews with a host of the greatest players ever to wear the team jersey, this comprehensive history of the tradition-rich Washington Redskins puts you on the 50-yard line to witness all of the team's most memorable moments and meet its greatest players, and you'll hear what they have to say about the brightest and darkest moments from the Skins' past. You'll discover:
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Sonny Jurgensen's last conversation with Vince Lombardi
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Jeff Rutledge's account of "the Greatest Comeback in Football History"
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Joe Theismann's take on the tackle that ended his career
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How George Allen assembled the "Over the Hill Gang"
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Joe Jacoby's Hog's-eye view of all three Redskins Super Bowl victories
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Gene Pepper's memories of playing with the legendary Sammy Baugh
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And much more


You'll also find color photos of outstanding players and coaches in action, including Lombardi, George Allen, Theismann, Jurgensen, Joe Gibbs, and many others. If you love the Skins, you must have Hail Victory!

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Washington, D.C., remains among the most politically and socially divided cities in the country. But for the past 70 years, the National Football League's Washington Redskins have united its citizens. In fact, Washington Times columnist Loverro argues in this team history that the Redskins rival the White House, Congress and the Supreme Court as institutions in the capital. It's that fan-boy tendency toward hyperbole, however, that sometimes gets in the way of telling an objective history of this storied franchise. Nevertheless, his thorough coverage includes the team's humble Boston origins, the golden days of the '30s and '40s, the Vince Lombardi and George Allen coaching eras, and the rise and return of current Redskins coach Joe Gibbs. Loverro also examines such inflammatory issues as racism and homosexuality in the League, and he notes how the changing pro football landscape impacted the Redskins organization. The author's style-paragraphs of narrative interspersed with quotation blocks from players and coaches such as Sam Huff, Sonny Jurgenson, Dexter Manley, Mark Moseley and Joe Theismann-is unexceptional but effective. Though it's frustratingly unclear whether Loverro conducted interviews himself or intercepted them from other sources, there are few franchises in professional sports that command an oral history as compelling as this, the narrative carries itself. For those who worship at the Redskins altar, Loverro's history makes a fitting gospel.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Inside Flap

The finest sports teams do more than merely entertain fans with their athletic prowess: they inspire loyalty, ignite passion, and cut across social divides to unite entire communities in hope, joy, anguish, anticipation, and shared memories. In all of sports, no team embodies this ideal more completely than the Washington Redskins.

In Hail Victory, Washington sportswriter Thom Loverro reconstructs the glorious history of this storied franchise through exclusive interviews with a host of the greatest and most beloved players ever to wear a Redskins jersey. Together, Loverro and these Redskins legends re-create the most memorable moments in the team's history, both on and off the field.

You'll hear from quarterback Mark Rypien, who relives the stunning 1992 Super Bowl in which the Redskins ran roughshod over a Buffalo Bills defense that had shown them little respect during the run-up to that lopsided victory. Two years earlier, down 33–14 in the third quarter of a regular season game against the Detroit Lions, coach Joe Gibbs called on third-stringer and placekick-holder Jeff Rutledge to run out the clock in an embarrassing defeat. Rutledge's account of his virtuoso performance in what would become the greatest comeback in NFL history is one of the most inspiring stories in sports.

Joe Theismann, Dexter Manley, and Joe Jacoby relive another unlikely comeback—the one that brought the Redskins their first Super Bowl victory in 1983. You'll also hear from Hall of Fame receiver Charley Taylor, who remembers his days as the favorite target of legendary quarterback Sonny Jurgensen.

Each outstanding era of Redskins history has been defined by its coach. Jurgensen recounts how football deity Vince Lombardi transformed the team from perennial losers into a force to be reckoned with. George Allen's "Over the Hill Gang" of proven veterans and winners gave the team an emotional identity, but it was the unsung Joe Gibbs who turned these tough contenders into champions. Loverro analyzes the styles and strengths of each Redskins coach, and players' comments provide insight into how the team functioned under each regime.

Featuring eight pages of color photos of Redskins greats in action, Hail Victory is a must-have for Redskins fans and a treat for football lovers all over the world (except those who live in Dallas!). --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 328 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; 1 edition (August 31, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0470179244
• ISBN-13: 978-0470179246
• Product Dimensions: 5.7 x 0.9 x 9.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #605,756 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Numerous editorial errors in author's game descriptions., January 1, 2008

By 

Scott Campbell (Leesburg, VA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Hail Victory: An Oral History of the Washington Redskins (Paperback)

I'm not old enough to remember game details prior to 1978, but Loverro's game descriptions after that point have numerous errors/key omissions. For example, in the description of the '79 finale against Dallas, he fails to mention that Riggins scored on a 60+ yard run to put the Skins up 13 with under 7 minutes remaining, and that Staubach led Dallas on two touchdown drives in the final 5 minutes to snatch a division championship AND playoff berth from the Redskins in devastating fashion.

In Loverro's description of the '87 opener against Philly, he says that Doug Williams started the game, which was not true. Reggie White knocked starter Jay Schroeder out with a shoulder separation.

On the clinching play against Minnesota in the '87 NFC Championship, Loverro says that Wade Wilson's last ditch pass was intended for Anthony Carter - the pass was actually to Darrin Nelson, and Darrell Green broke it up to put the Skins in the Super Bowl.

Among the photos in the book, there is a picture of Joe Theismann scrambling from a Houston Oilers defender, yet the caption says that it is a Miami Dolphins defender.

There are others mistakes that I could comment on, but you get the idea that the editorial work was an absolute afterthought.

If you can get past inaccurate descriptions of games you remember, the anecdotes told by the players are BY FAR the best part of the book. It's a shame that Loverro did not put the same effort into his game research that he put into his interviews of coaches, players, and other staff, because this really could have been a 5-star book for Skins fans everywhere.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars HAIL TO THE REDSKINS...HAIL VICTORY, May 26, 2007

By 

S. Harris "SWO MAN" (Vienna, VA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Hail Victory: An Oral History of the Washington Redskins (Hardcover)

One of the original teams to form the National Football League and one of the few that has remained true to its name and city, this is a must read by anyone that claims the high honor of being a fan of the Washington Redskins - AMERICA's REAL TEAM
And, if you are a Dallas Cowboy Fan, you can go ...!!!

5.0 out of 5 stars one of the best sports oral histories, December 12, 2011

By 

Brian Maitland (Vancouver, BC, Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Hail Victory: An Oral History of the Washington Redskins (Hardcover)

You don't really need to be a Redskins fan to enjoy this. The way the book is laid out is fantastic. Basically, various seasons or eras are approached interspersed with the oral history parts of players, coaches and owners talking about various events along the way.

I really enjoyed the discussion of how the Cowboys-Redskins rivalry developed over the Cowboys' exec Tex Schramm buying the rights to the 'Skins fight song to spite Redskins' owner George Preston Marshall, and how various 'Skins players were from Texas which gave the rivalry that extra edge. It just didn't start with the George Allen era in Washington although the animosity really did take off with the "Ramskins" of the '70s.

To learn why it took the Redskins so long to integrate their team after other NFL teams had done so was explained and it's not all on DC being a de facto "Southern" city.

Personally, just to read about Redskin great QB Sonny Jurgensen alone was worth the price of this.