Post by 98hoya on Aug 6, 2007 15:48:34 GMT -5
I posted this on the football board, but thought people beyond football junkies might be interested:
While waiting for college football season to roll around, I decided to get in the season's spirit by reading a new book by Sally Jenkins called The Real All-Americans. The book is about the founding of the Carlisle Indian School and the trials and tribulations of its football program. Not only is this an excellent book for those generally interested in American history and football history (early college football history was crazy!), but there is an interesting Georgetown connection...
First, the glory-days Carlisle team played Georgetown 6 times in the early part of the 20th Century when both were national powers and, unfortunately for us, beat the Hoyas every time. It's amazing to think there was a time when a team coached by Pop Warner and starring Jim Thorpe would play against the Blue and Gray, but it's true. G'town gets several passing references with respect to their games vs. Carlisle.
Second, one of the real success stories of the Carlisle Indian School was a fellow named Albert Exendine. Exendine was an Arapaho indian and the first star of the Carlisle team (1905-07), as well as a law school graduate, a hero in WW I and...the Georgetown football coach from 1914-22 including two seasons where the team went 8-1 and 9-1....(only somewhat relatedly, I've been hoping to win a million dollar scratch ticket so I could donate the $$$ to the athletic department and insist that the MSF be called "Blozas Stadium" and the field surface called "Exendine Field." Two American heroes).
At any rate - this book was great, regardless of the Gtown connection, but the fact that Exendine went on to be a great coach on the Hilltop should be the clincher for anyone on the fence about reading it...
While waiting for college football season to roll around, I decided to get in the season's spirit by reading a new book by Sally Jenkins called The Real All-Americans. The book is about the founding of the Carlisle Indian School and the trials and tribulations of its football program. Not only is this an excellent book for those generally interested in American history and football history (early college football history was crazy!), but there is an interesting Georgetown connection...
First, the glory-days Carlisle team played Georgetown 6 times in the early part of the 20th Century when both were national powers and, unfortunately for us, beat the Hoyas every time. It's amazing to think there was a time when a team coached by Pop Warner and starring Jim Thorpe would play against the Blue and Gray, but it's true. G'town gets several passing references with respect to their games vs. Carlisle.
Second, one of the real success stories of the Carlisle Indian School was a fellow named Albert Exendine. Exendine was an Arapaho indian and the first star of the Carlisle team (1905-07), as well as a law school graduate, a hero in WW I and...the Georgetown football coach from 1914-22 including two seasons where the team went 8-1 and 9-1....(only somewhat relatedly, I've been hoping to win a million dollar scratch ticket so I could donate the $$$ to the athletic department and insist that the MSF be called "Blozas Stadium" and the field surface called "Exendine Field." Two American heroes).
At any rate - this book was great, regardless of the Gtown connection, but the fact that Exendine went on to be a great coach on the Hilltop should be the clincher for anyone on the fence about reading it...