Customer Reviews

That First Season: How Vince Lombardi Took the Worst Team in the NFL and Set It on the Path to Glory

5 star:		(33)
4 star:		(18)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

In That First Season , sports biographer-John Eisenberg-tells the story of Vince Lombardi's coming to the small town of Green Bay to coach the Green Bay Packers. In 1958 the Packers finished one of their worst seasons and were looking hard to turn things around. Native New Yorker, Vince Lombardi, became the man. This book chronicles how a tough-nosed man who had never been a head coach led the undisciplined and "Detroit-Lion-Like" Packers to several championships - with basically the same team of players.

I enjoyed this book from the perspective of being a Packer fan, Wisconsin native and leader of a team - pastor of a church.

This is an inspiring book on the importance of a coach on a football team. The methods and tactics that Lombardi installed in Green Bay would be very difficult to the modern football star who makes so much more money than the head coach. Lombardi's leadership focused on fundamentals, preparation, discipline, training, hard work, loyalty, perseverance, and strategy.

You would almost have to live in a cave or under a rock on a remote island not to have at least heard of Vince Lombardi and the now famous football team he brought from the bottom of the pile to the top. I strongly suspect that most Americans, even if they are not football fans or have never seen a game in their life, are at least somewhat familiar with the Lombardi legend.

This book by John Eisenberg is the well written, and I must say thoroughly researched account of the first year of the Lombardi/Greenbay story. This work is remarkable, or at least interesting, on several levels. While it does not offer any surprises or reveal anything that was or is not already known, it does present a very macroscopic look at a period in time and the events that pretty much changed the world of not only professional football, but professional sports in this country. The author's writing style is quite readable and even though you know what is going to happen, the writer has the ability to keep you turning the pages.

The book begins with an account of just how low the Packers where in 1959 under the leadership of Scooter McLean. It goes into detail addressing all of the physical and mental hurdles that Lombardi would have to face when he took over the team the following season. Quite remarkable really, when you consider the wonderful past this team had. The one portion of the work presented here that I was unaware of at the time of the reading, was the fact that the entire team had been micromanaged by its governing board...i.e. they had been managed and indeed coached my committee; a rather large committee. This committee had pretty well mucked things up over the years. This all changed completely when Lombardi took over.

The author covers every preseason game, almost play by play of that first season under the new coach and the goes on to give an almost play by play account of every game played throughout the year. If you are a football nut, you will love this. If you dislike football, or could care less, then this aspect of the book will have your eyeballs rolling to the back of your head.

But that last comment being said, there is plenty of other information in the pages of this book to keep your interest alive. We not only get a wonderful glimpse into the working mind of who is beyond a doubt one of the greatest coaches, in any sport, of all times, but we also get a wonderful overview of the development of some of the most famous players ever played the game; Bart Starr, Don McIhenny, Paul Hornung, and Boyd Dowler just to name a few.

I found this to be an enjoyable read and was glad to add it to my collection of books on the life of Lombardi. It was a worthwhile read and kept me entertained throughout its reading.

Don Blankenship
The Ozarks

Much has been chronicled and written about the highly successful Green Bay Packer football team of the 1950s-1960s that helped christen Green Bay as "Titletown USA" and its iconic coach, Vince Lombardi, who became a legend in his own time. But what would have happened to the Green Bay Packer legend if Vince Lombardi had never been hired following the disastrous 1-10-1 season in 1958? That is a burning enigmatic question I grappeled with as I read sportswriter John Eisenberg's excellent "That First Season".

"That First Season" is a well researched, highly readable portrait of how "the right man for the right job at the right time" ended up in Green Bay and transformed an unfocused, unmotivated group of losers suffering through a horrible one-win season to become a 7-5 winning team in one year and a team that would later send a truckload of its players to the hall of fame. Imagine Paul Hornung unwanted and sitting under-utilized on the bench. Or Bart Starr, considered too nice and too mistake prone to be a starting quarterback in the NFL. Or Jim Taylor, not considered big enough or strong enough to become a hall of fame fullback. Or Ray Nitchke, considered too undisciplined to ever become a true leader. These are poignant characterizations of what Lombardi inherited when he assumed the coaching and personnel reins of the Packers after that disastrous 1958 season.

"That First Season" examines in detail how Lombardi and his coaches took control of a losing team and guided it and its community back to respectability in the world of professional football. It chronicles Lombardi's decisions and personal beliefs that turned the tide of professional football history--such as deciding which players were improperly utilized, who could become stars, and who needed the proper encouragement to become leaders. Yes, this book is as much about a study in leadership as it is a memoir of that wonderful period when professional football grew from a part time profession to the billion dollar centerpiece of Amercian sports culture it is today.

As a young teen discovering the emerging power of the NFL, I lived through the era represented in this book and many of the games and players discussed I personally remember reading about and seeing. Although not a Packer fan, I found this book addictive reading as it became clear how one man totally transformed a sports franchise from non-committed losers to world champions. As hall-of-famer Fuzzy Thurston remarked, "We didn't like him as a person...But we loved him as a coach". I strongly recommend this fun, quick read to any football or sports fan who may have interest in these halcyon years of the NFL or in how a legend is born.

That First Season is the story of the legendary Vince Lombardi's first season with the Green Bay Packers in 1959. The Packers had fallen on hard times in the late fifties, and good seasons were hard to come by. Clearly a coaching change was in order. At the same time, Vince Lombardi was an assistant coach with the New York Giants. Tom Landry was there during the same period. Pretty good staff.

Lombardi had been looking for a way to obtain a head coaching position. He was highly thought of as a coach, but was not well known and was not getting any younger. Recommendations from respected friends in the coaching profession led the management of the Packers to interview Lombardi and finally to offer him the position as head coach of the Packers. Of course, Lombardi took the job and his success in Green Bay is now legendary.

Vince Lombardi was a tough coach. His players said that they would not want him as a friend but that they loved having him as their coach, especially as he began to prove to them that they could win. Mr. Eisenberg's book takes the reader through the first season in detail - offseason activities, practices, preseason games, and regular season. He also gives us a high level play by play of each game plus a wealth of behind the scenes information.

Lombardi's success as the Packers coach is well known. This book gives an excellent picture of how the success began. Any fan of football and the NFL will enjoy the book. For fans of the Green Bay Packers, I would think that the book should not be missed.

At the conclusion of the 1958 NFL season the Green Bay Packers were a franchise in total disarray. The team had finished 1-10-1 and had not had a winning season since 1947. First year head coach Ray "Scooter" McLean lost control of his team early on and never recovered. The low point of the 1958 season was a 56-0 drubbing at the hands of the Baltimore Colts. Even in football crazed Green Bay people were beginnng to lose interest in the team. The situation called for drastic measures.

At the conclusion of the season the Packers launched the search for their next head coach. The conventional wisdom was that the Packers would bring back former star player and head coach Curly Lambeau. But team President Dominic Olejniczak was thinking outside the box and became interested in a New York Giants assistant coach. His name was Vince Lombardi. Lombardi came highly recommended from some of the most prominent people in the NFL. It would be a gamble for sure but Olejniczak determined that it was a risk worth taking. "That First Season: How Vince Lombardi Took the Worst Team in the NFL and Set It on the Path to Glory" is John Eisenberg's comprehensive account of one of the most incredible turnarounds in the history of professional sports. It is a book that will grab your attention from page 1 and simply never let go.

When Vince Lombardi was named head coach of the Packers in January of 1959 the reaction of nearly all of the players as well as the fans and the media in Green Bay was "Vince who?". After all Vince Lombardi was 45 years old and hadn't been a head coach at any level since he coached a high school team in New Jersey more than a decade earlier. What made the Packers brass think that this odd looking Italian guy from New York City was the person to turn around the franchise? Lombardi himself honestly thought that it might take him the full five years of his contract to turn things around. Vince Lombardi made it clear to Packer officials that the only way he would take the job was if he was given complete control of football operations. Lombardi immediately changed the way the team looked, the way it played and especially the culture In 1959, he ordered that the Packers' uniforms be revamped. The resulting design was almost identical to the uniforms the team continues to wear today. It was a new day in Green Bay baby!

As things turned out Vince Lombardi had more talent on his roster than he realized. As he reviewed the film from the disastrous 1958 season he determined that many of his players had not been utilized properly in the complicated schemes devised by his predecessor. Lombardi was going to simplify things and demand nothing less than perfection from his charges. His players quickly discovered that he was a relentless taskmaster. It was his way or the highway! After a grueling training camp the Green Bay Packers went into the 1959 season a much more focused and well-conditioned team. In just a few short months opposing coaches would discover that Vince Lombardi had already made the Packers a force to be reckoned with in the National Football League. They would go on to experience a level of success that was simply unimaginable at the start of the season.

"That First Season: How Vince Lombardi Took the Worst Team in the NFL and Set It on the Path to Glory" tells the remarkable story of those 1959 Green Bay Packers with great verve and flair. You will get to know many of the greats from that 1959 team including Bart Starr, Jim Taylor, Max McGee and of course "The Golden Boy" Paul Hornung. And you will come to understand how Vince Lombardi was able to transform a perennial loser into an NFL powerhouse. Author John Eisenberg proves to be an extremely gifted writer. I do not generally read a lot of sports books but this is without a doubt one of the finest sports books I have ever read. I simply could not put this one down. Very highly recommended!

I didn't want this book to end. "That First Season" is an excellent look into the genesis of the Packer dynasty. Eisenberg did a fantastic job researching and obtaining quotes for this piece. He tells the story of Bart Starr's ascent to starting quarterback in inspirational fashion, demonstrating how Starr's championship legacy was created out of extreme dedication and hard work. "That First Season" also illustrates how coaches can affect a team's character and the outcome of their season.

I know that Lombardi is one of those subjects that has been covered to death. I know that everyone and their mother has written a book about him, as well as 75% of the people who played for him. But Eisenberg takes an interesting approach--rather than attempting to do just another biography, he focuses on the first year of Lombardi's love affair with Green Bay. This provides several new wrinkles to the story that aren't often made clear. For instance, how does such a strong, uncompromising personality walk into an atmosphere that isn't already conformed to it? How do you convince a team of losers that they're better than that?

Eisenberg shows this side of Lombardi with loads of details, personal anecdotes, and recreations of conversations. The only thing I can say against the book is that the actual descriptions of the games themselves are not nearly as engaging as the events surrounding them. However, it is just a minor flaw in a good book that adds depth to a field that had previously felt already-plowed.

Well written. The author really made me feel what it must have been like to play football for the Green Bay Packers during Lombardies first season.

I'm not a Packers fan per say, but it was an interesting read about one of the greatest coaches in NFL history. Worth the time, and an easy read.

That First Season by John Eisenberg offers an interesting and informative narration of Vince Lombardi's first season as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers. Upon being hired away from his offensive coordinator position with the New York Giants, Lombardi was tasked with turning around a team that had been among the worst in the NFL in recent years, all the while inheriting a roster that had been lulled into complacency about losing and bad habits by their previous coach.

Upon implementing his no-nonsense coaching tactics and running physically demanding practices, the Packers soon realized that their days of playing the game casually were over, especially if they wanted to remain with the team. Several questioned whether dealing with Lombardi was worth it.

Especially interesting was learning of the development of NFL Hall of Famers Bart Starr, Paul Hornung, and Ray Nitschke. As the season began, none of the three were the stars that they are know as today. Starr was a hard-working, but mistake prone back-up quarterback, who didn't begin to show the abilities that would make him a Packers legend until later in the season, when the starting quarterback got injured. Hornung was a hard partying athlete, who was very talented, but didn't really become a star until experiencing a reality check after being benched by Lombardi in a game to to poor play. Nitchske was talented, but wild in all facets and required harnessing.

This book provides a window into how Lombardi took a team that had been at the bottom of the NFL and made them very respectable in his first season, playing as well as anyone in the league by season's end. The foundation for the Packers that Lombardi laid in that first season ultimately led to the Packers to several NFL championships, earning Green Bay the nickname "Titletown."