Other Best American Series

The Best American
Sports Writing 2012

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Book Details

The Best American Sports Writing brings together the finest writing on sports to appear in the past year. Culled from over 350 publications, this collection captures the world of sports in all its drama, humanity, and excitement.

 

Contents

Foreword

Introduction by Michael Wilbon

 

DAVE SHEININ. The Phenomenal Son
from the Washington Post Magazine

WRIGHT THOMPSON. In Tendulkar Country
from ESPN.com

ROBERT HUBER. Allen Iverson: Fallen Star
from Philadelphia

THOMAS LAKE. Bad Nights in the NFL
from Sports Illustrated

JOHN BRANCH. Punched Out: The Life and Death of a Hockey Enforcer
from The New York Times

PAUL SOLOTAROFF with RICK TELANDER. The Ferocious Life and Tragic Death of a Super Bowl Star
from Men’s Journal

JEANNE MARIE LASKAS. The People v. Football
from GQ

S.ºL. PRICE. The Heart of Football Beats in Aliquippa
from Sports Illustrated

JOHN BRANT. Frank’s Story
from Runner’s World

BILL DONAHUE. Fixing Diane’s Brain
from Runner’s World

MICHAEL MOONEY. He Do What He Do
from D Magazine

TIM LAYDEN. The Forgotten Hero
from Sports Illustrated

ALEX BELTH. The Two-Fisted, One-Eyed Misadventures of Sportswriting’s Last Badass
from Deadspin.com

TOMMY TOMLINSON. Something Went Very Wrong at Toomer’s Corner
from Sports Illustrated

TAYLOR BRANCH. The Shame of College Sports
from The Atlantic

S.ºL. PRICE. Staring Down History
from Sports Illustrated

JERÉ LONGMAN. Boy Genius
from the New York Times

BEN McGRATH. Queen of the D-League
from The New Yorker

WELLS TOWER. Welcome to the Far Eastern Conference
from GQ

JON MOOALLEM. The History (and Mystery) of the High Five
from ESPN: The Magazine

 

Contributors’ Notes

Notable Sports Writing of 2012

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Other distinguished sports writing submissions, selected by series editor Glenn Stout.

A-B
Abrams, Jonathan The Murder of Tayshana Murphy Grantland.com, November 14, 2011
Adelson, Erc A Comeback Story for All Time ThePostGame.com, July 24, 2011
Albert, Jason Being Tony Plush Slate.com, August 12, 2011
Bacon, John U. What Happens After the Hero’s Gone Detroit News, March 18, 2011
Baker, Matt On the Verge of a Dream Tulsa World, June 5, 2011
Ballard, Chris Dewayne Dedmon’s Leap of Faith Sports Illustrated, November 14, 2011
Banicki, Elizabeth Wrong Side of the Track Slake LA No. 2, 2011
Barker, Jeff After Coming Out, Former Maryland Player Feels He Has a Second Chance Baltimore Sun, July 9, 2011
Bass, Rick Eat, Prey, Love Texas Monthly, November 2011
Berkow, Ira Painting with Words Creative Nonfiction, Summer 2011
Blanchard, Barry Sanctum Alpinist, July 2011
Brown, De Neen Strongwoman Washington Post Magazine, May 29, 2011
Bures, Frank Finding His Way Runner’s World, Spring 2011
Buschel, Bruce Rickey, Rocket, and the Sweeney Plan Deadspin.com, April 6, 2011
C-D
Calkins, Matt Racer’s Secret Pursuit The Columbian, December 11, 2011
Carpenter, Les 44 Lives On ThePostGame.com, November 9, 2011
Clark, Anna Ty Cobb as Detroit Grantland.com, July 22, 2011
Cohen, Ben Moneyball 2.0 ThePostGame.com, February 24, 2011
Crothers, Tim Game of Her Life ESPN: The Magazine, January 10, 2011
Curtis, Bryan On the Peninsula The Daily Beast, April 25, 2011
Douglas, Rory Notes from an Amateur Spectator at Amateur Mixed Martial Arts Fights McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, April 27, 2011
Drehs, Wayne Not My Coach, Not My Town, Not Anymore ESPN: The Magazine, December 26, 2011
Duncan, Jeff Former Saint Steve Gleason New Orleans Times Picayune, September 25, 2011
E-F
Ellifritt, Duane Baseball Crazy in Doddridge Goldenseal, Summer 2011
Fields, Bill Portrait of an Artist: Seve Golf World, May 16, 2011
Ford, Bob Can Paterno Survive the Coming Storm? Philadelphia Inquirer, November 6, 2011
Forgrave, Reid Yemi Bablola Foxsports.com, December 22, 2011
Freedman, Lew The 100-Year Story of Indiana Basketball Columbus Republic, January 2–February 28, 2011
Frick-Wright, Peter Futile Feud Bike, November 2011
Friedman, Steve All at Sea Runner’s World, April 2011
G-H
Ganim, Sara Mothers of Two of Jerry Sandusky’s Alleged Victims Lash Out at Penn State’s Handling of Scandal Harrisburg Patriot News, November 7, 2011
Gay, Jason A Father, a Son, and Some Rafa Wall Street Journal, September 1, 2011
Golianopoulos, Thomas All He Wanted: Chris Kanyon’s Doomed Quest to Be Wrestling’s First Openly Gay Star TheAwl.com, April 13, 2011
Greenwood, Willard Claude Westfall and the Last Presidential Salmon The American Fly Fisher, Summer 2011
Gregory, Sean Princeton vs. UCLA: Reflections on a Historic Upset Time, March 16, 2011
Grigoriadis, Vanessa A Major League Divorce Vanity Fair, August 2011
Hawthorn, Tom A Cigar with the Oldest Living Major Leaguer The Tyee, March 4, 2011
Hay, Clarissa Queens of Pain New Letters, vol. 78, no. 1, 2011
Heckart, Justin The Frozen Lake ThePostGame.com, December 12, 2011
Howard, Johnette Paul Deutsch: Rage to Riches to Rags Yahoo.com, December 1, 2011
Hruby, Patrick The Legend of Gary Mays Is No Legend ESPN.com, February 28, 2011
I-J
Jennings, Jay Race Runner’s World, December 2011
Johnson, Kris Matter of Survival Scenedaily.com, November 29, 2011
Jordan, Pat The Haircut Southern Review, Spring 2011
K-L
King, Jason Billy Donovan’s Secret Sorrow ThePostGame.com, January 11, 2011
Kruse, Michael Becoming an Outlier, One Stroke at a Time St. Petersburg Times, March, 27, 2011
Kruse, Michael We Are the Jumbo-Tron Generation ThePostGame.com, December 27, 2011
Kuehn, Amber Beating the Odds Helena Independent Record, October 22, 2011
Leavy, Jane One Round Grantland.com, June 20, 2011
Lehrer, Jonah Some Reassembly Required Outside, May 2011
M-N
MacGregor, Jeff The Thing Itself: Essential Basketball ESPN.com, March 21, 2011
MacGregor, Jeff Usain Bolt DQ: Failure to Launch ESPN.com, August 29, 2011
Madruga, John A Return to the Self Peloton, 2011
Maese, Rick Did Anyone Survive? Washington Post Magazine, August 21, 2011
Martin, Peter The Climb Esquire, April 2011
Masony, Colleen Withered by Disease, Coach Inspires Team Chicago Tribune, June 16, 2011
Mellinger, Sam Shadow of a Boxer Kansas City Star, February 13, 2011
Merkin, Daphne Mike Tyson Moves to the Suburbs New York Times, March 15, 2011
Merrill, Elizabeth Maggie Dixon Still Revered for Her Impact ESPN.com, April 4, 2011
Montgomery, Ben When a Diver Goes Missing, a Deep Cave Is Scene of a Deeper Mystery. St. Petersburg Times, April 17, 2011
Morosi, Paul Red Sox Ultimately Can’t Weather Rays FoxSports.com, September 29, 2011
Moser, Patrick The Reports of Surfing’s Demise Have Been Greatly Exaggerated Bamboo Ridge Press, no. 98, 2011
Mullins, Luke Who Made Andy Najar? Washingtonian, March 2011
Nash, Peter The Downfall of Barry Halper, Baseball Collecting’s Bernie Madoff Deadspin.com, July 6, 2011
O-P
Oney, Steve The Fighter Playboy, December 2011
O’Brien, Luke The Last Act of the Notorious Howie Spira Deadspin.com, October 26, 2011
O’Neil, Devon Can Skiing Save Valdez, Alaska? Skiing, December 2011
Passan, Jeff Sabremetrican in Exile ThePostGame.com, January 25, 2011
Plaschke, Bill On Mother’s Day, Ann Stow Shares a Message and Waits for a Miracle Los Angeles Times, May 8, 2011
Powelson, Michael One Shining Moment for a Two-Sided State WV Living Magazine, June 2011
Q-R
Riggs, Mike The End of the Rodeo for the World’s Greatest Cowboy TheAwl.com, June 9, 2011
Robertson, Linda Nothing Matches Purity of Prep Football Miami Herald, September 10, 2011
Robinson, Joshua Making a Wiffle Ball Wall Street Journal, May 15, 2011
Robson, Dan The Long Road Home Sportsnet, November 28, 2011
Rodrick, Stephen The Rebirth of Rick Rubin Men’s Journal, November 2011
Rogan, Mary Out on the Ice Esquire, January 2011
Rugg, Peter Little Bastard The Pitch, April 26, 2011
S-T
Samaha, Albert Intentional Grounding Riverfront Times, November 17, 2011
Sanneh, Kelefa Monday Night Lights The New Yorker, December 12, 2011
Sokolove, Michael Rent-a-Center (or Point Guard or Swingman) New York Times Magazine, March 13, 2011
Strickland, Bill The Escape Bicycling, December 2011
Stuever, Hank Cultural Zeitgeist, Scored by Super Bowl Commercials Washington Post, February 7, 2011
Sturz, James Ready, Set, Goat! Afar, January/February 2011
Styf, Jon Is Football Fatal? Beaumont Enterprise, April 10, 2011
Temple, Jess Standing Strong Muncie Star-Press, May 15, 2011
Torre, Pablo S. Larger Than Real Life Sports Illustrated, July 4, 2011
U-V
Ufford, Matt 38 Seconds TheClassical.com, November 10, 2011
Vecsey, George One More from the Heart New York Times, December 17, 2011
Vine, Katy The Birdman of Texas Texas Monthly, May 2011
W-X
Weinreb, Michael Growing Up Penn State Grantland.com, November 8, 2011
Wetzel, Dan Who Is Nevin Shapiro? Yahoo.com, August 16, 2011
Wiewiora, Chris The Gift of Nothing Stymie, Autumn/Winter 2011
Y-Z
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

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