Title/Author:
“In the
Name of the Father: Family, Football and the Manning Dynasty” by Mark Ribowsky
Tags:
Football
(American), biography, family, Saints, Colts, Broncos, Giants,
Publish
date:
August 7,
2018
Length:
400 pages
Rating:
4 of 5
stars (very good)
Review:
Football
fans, both college and professional, know about the Manning family. Father Archie and sons Peyton and Eli all
became All-Pro quarterbacks in the NFL and the two sons have each won two Super
Bowls. Even their older brother, Cooper, was a football star (although he was a
wide receiver) in high school before being diagnosed with spinal stenosis
during his freshman year in college. Their
family lineage and royalty in football is told in this very good book by noted
biographer Mark Ribowsky.
The story
is not all golden as more than just a write-up about the football players and
lives on and off the field, the book tells of a culture that was slow to change
and how the family members were reflections of that culture from the Deep South.
Archie, while becoming a legend at Ole Miss, also was one who reflected the
difficulty of the Southern culture to become integrated. There is never any blatant racism portrayed
by any of the Mannings or their spouses but it is clear in Ribowsky’s writing
that some of the changes taking place were being accepted slower by them than
they were in the rest of the country.
There are
some other dark moments covered in the book, such as the lawsuit filed by a
female trainer at the University of Tennessee against Peyton Manning. While the
story wasn’t big news at the time, it took new life as Peyton continually
denied anything inappropriate took place and he held a long-time grudge against
the woman about the case. This is an example of how the author was able to shed
new light about the family and its dynamics as well as new information about
this particular incident.
Of
course, there is plenty of football talk as well. The careers of all three Manning quarterbacks
are illustrated with great detail.
Archie’s woes on bad teams in New Orleans, Houston and Minnesota will
make a reader feel his pain. The joys
exhibited by Peyton and Eli are felt as well, especially in Eli’s case when he
led the Giants to an upset of the undefeated Patriots in Super Bowl XLII. The college careers of all three Mannings are
covered just as well, especially Archie as he was considered a king of college
football and set many individual records at Ole Miss. These have since been
broken by others, but the Manning name is still revered on that campus.
Complete in
its research and content, engaging in its writing and informative for readers,
this book is one that is recommended for all football fans, whether or not they
are fans of any of the Mannings or their teams.
I wish to
thank W.W. Norton and Liveright for providing a copy of the book via NetGalley
in exchange for an honest review.
Book
Format Read:
E-book (PDF)
Buying Links:
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