BARRY
SWITZER
Bootlegger's BoyWITH BUD SHRAKEWhen Barry Switzer stepped down as head coach of the Oklahoma Sooners on June 16, 1989, he was the fourth most successful coach in NCAA history and, some say, "next to God," the most revered figure in the state of Oklahoma.
For sixteen years, Barry Switzer was both reviled and praised by the media as the
supposed "outlaw" of college football, characterized as "the greatest rogue, pirate, hustler, and con man" ever to command a football team.
He is inarguably one of the most successful recruiters, motivators, and strategists ever to deliver a halftime speech. His tireless efforts brought a long succession of All-Americans, Outland and Heisman trophy winners, Orange Bowls, and conference championships during his tenure - not to mention numerous victories over Oklahoma's heated rivals, in Nebraska, Texas, and elsewhere.
Within the rigid racial boundaries of southern society in the 1940s and 1950s, Barry Switzer was brought up in an unconventional multiracial world of black market whiskey and sports. Before Barry graduated from college, his mother died by her own hand. Not many years later, his father also died in an eerie circumstance that tragically reflected the trauma and turmoil of Barry's childhood.
Eventually, Barry Switzer was brought down, not by his own practices, but by the excesses of some unruly players, the media hysteria that resulted, and the witch-hunt that ensued at Oklahoma University. Barry has now turned his back on college coaching for good - there is nothing left to restrain his legendary candor. Here are but a few of the bombshells:
- amazing revelations of the conditions of employment under which Barry labored during his career at Oklahoma;
- a foiled attempt to plant drugs on an Oklahoma player;
- an open letter to Brian Bosworth;
- the mysterious circumstances surrounding the false criminal charges that forced Barry's resignation;
- the whole story of the Marcus Dupree affair, including the role played in it by a major national sports publication;
a point-by-point expose of the NCAA's accusations against the Oklahoma football program;
- and much, much more.
This book is Barry's chance to speak the true about his own techniques for recruiting players, the strategy and mindset that made his teams great, and some of the unrealistic and insensitive NCAA regulations that many coaches around the country feel they must circumvent if they are to be fair to the players in their "football families." And he tells us what he feels about the directions the NCAA is now heading in a number of controversial areas and the impact it is having on disadvantage blacks.
As Barry is quick to point out, this isn't a "Bo, or Joe, or Lou book." His story isn't plain vanilla.
Bud Shrake is a journalist and screenwriter who is the coauthor with Willie Nelson of a previous biography. He lives in Austin, Texas.
"This is an important book because it shows a side of big-time football that, to be frank with you, I naively didn't really believe existed."
- From the Foreword by JOE PATERNO
"Bootlegger's Boy is a dazzling run for a touchdown if ever I've seen one. Funny, tragic, informative, revealing... Barry Switzer and Bud Shrake knock you out of your jock with the truth about big-time football - and America."
- DAN JENKINS