Review of “A Big Mess in Texas”

Looking at upcoming books makes it easy to se that fall is approaching, meaning football season is getting close. This book, about a failed NFL team in the 1950’s, is informative and entertaining. Here is my review of A Big Mess in Texas.

Title/Author: “A Big Mess in Texas” by David Fleming

Rating: 5 of 5 stars (excellent)

Review: Before the Dallas Cowboys became “America’s Team”, there were two professional teams that tried to be successful in that city. The story of one of those teams that didn’t succeed is known to many football fans- the Kansas City Chiefs started out as the Dallas Texans in the same year as the Cowboys, 1960 and lasted three seasons there with a championship in 1962 before moving to Kansas City.

However, there was an earlier team in Dallas called the Texans. They lasted one season, 1952, and sported a woeful 1-11 record. The short but wacky and eventually sad state of this team is the subject of this book by David Fleming.

The 1952 Texans were previously the New York Yankees (not to be confused with the legendary baseball team) and were sold to Giles Miller, the son of the owner of a successful textile company.Fleming does a very good job of portraying Giles and his many failed attempts at business using his father’s money. Figuring it would be different to own a pro football team in a football-crazy state, Giles goes ahead and purchases the Yankees, moves them to Dallas, and then realizes there’s more than what he bargained for.

The stories about Miller, the team’s struggles, and the carousing of the Texan players are the best parts of the book and it is here that Fleming does his best work. One player readers will recognize right away is Hall of Famer Art Donovan, whose eating, drinking and carousing in the book is amazing. Just as amazing as the poor play of the Texans and the mishandling of the team's finances which led them to lose their home stadium before the season ended. But their temporary home of the Rubber Bowl in Akron, Ohio was the site of the Texans’ best moment, their upset of the Chicago Bears. 

If a reader wants to read an entertaining book on what pro football was like before the NFL became so successful, this is a good choice. Also, a it should be noted that after that one season, the franchise was on the move again. In 1953, new owners moved the team to Baltimore where they became the Baltimore Colts. That turned out to be a bit more successful that their time in Dallas.  

I wish to thank St. Martin’s Press for providing a copy of the book via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are strictly my own. 

Link:https://www.amazon.com/Big-Mess-Texas-Miraculous-Disastrous/dp/1250374308/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0