Mean on Sunday: The Autobiography of Ray Nitschke

by Robert Wells, Robert W. Wells

Excellent Book

Genres: Sports, Biography, History, Football

309 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1998

About the author

UK writer, born Frank Charles Robert Wells on 31 January 1929 in London, that began publishing Science Fiction with "The Machine that was Lovely" for the Observer in 1954.
Other works:
* The Parasaurians (1969);
* Candle in the Sun (1971);
* Right-Handed Wilderness (1973) and
* The Spacejacks (1975).

Reviews

[Garrett Pope · Rating 5 out of 5]

Personal Response: I thought this book was pretty good, because I got to learn about a Packers Hall of Famer. I also got to learn about how good the Packers were back in the 1960s. Finally, I got to learn how good Ray Nitschke was good at football, until his career ended as a football.

Plot: Mean on Sunday by Ray Nitschke is about the life and football career of Ray Nitschke. He was born on December 29, 1936 to Robert Nitschke and Anna Nitschke. Ray had two older brothers named Richard and Robert. Unfortunately, Ray’s father was killed in a car crash when Ray was three years old. Luckily, Ray’s grandma moved in to help his mom after the car crash. Ray Nitschke’s mother died of a blood clot when Ray was only thirteen years old. So, Ray and his two brothers were orphans. Ray was really mad, so he got into lots of fights. Ray did not care about school anymore and his grades were dropping. Things kept getting worse, until Ray got into high school. He heard that football was starting, so Ray decided to sign up. The reason that Ray signed up for football was that he could hit people legally. Ray was assigned the position of fullback. He couldn’t play many football games, because his grades were bad. Ray also tried playing baseball and basketball. Ray Nitschke decided to try harder in school and get his grades up. The next year, Ray was put as the position of quarterback. He played that position until he graduated from high school. Ray was offered a scholarship to the University of Illinois, but was also offered a contract to play baseball for the St. Louis Browns. During the football season, Ray’s coach was running out of people in the offensive backfield, so he moved Ray to fullback. Ray played fullback on offense and linebacker on defense. He had a great career in Illinois. When the 1958 NFL Draft came along, Ray wanted to get drafted by the Chicago Bears. The reason Ray wanted to get drafted by the Bears is that they were his favorite team in the NFL growing up. He ended up getting drafted the the Green Bay Packers as a linebacker. Ray Nitschke really didn’t want to go to the Packers, but he did not complain when they drafted him. Ray’s first season as a Packer went really bad. The Packers ended the year with only one win and lost ten times. At the end of the year, they decided to hire Vince Lombardi, the offensive coach for the New York Giants, as a head coach. Vince really changed the Green Bay Packers. They won seven games and lost five games. The Packers won NFL Championship in 1961. He helped the Packers win the 1962 NFL Championship. Nitschke was awarded the MVP of the game and got a 1963 Chevrolet Corvette. Ray was still a backup linebacker and he will remain one, until 1963. In 1963, Ray Nitschke became a starting middle linebacker. He was really happy about becoming a starter, so he had to make his mark in the NFL. Ray had a pretty good year in 1963, because he helped the Packers win ten games. Ray Nitschke and the Packers would not win another championship for another two years. In 1965, the Packers won the NFL Championship against the Cleveland Browns with a score of 23 to 12. The next year, Ray Nitschke helped the Packers get to the NFL Championship again. They would face the Dallas Cowboys. The Packers won the game and were invited to the first Super Bowl against the AFL Champions. AFL stands for American Football League. They would play the Kansas City Chiefs. The Packers would win that game 33 to 14. Ray Nitschke helped the Packers win nine games in 1967 and a trip to the NFL Championship. The Packers would play against the Dallas Cowboys for the second year in a row. The Packers beat the Cowboys 21 to 17. They would play the Oakland Raiders in the second Super Bowl. The Packers won the game 33 to 14. Vince Lombardi went to go coach for the Washington Redskins for the 1968 season. The Packers went downhill after 1967, because they didn’t have Vince Lombardi. In 1971, Ray was replaced by Jim Carter. Ray would back up for Carter, even though Jim Carter was not really good. Whenever Jim would do bad, the crowd would yell, “We want Nitschke” and start cheering when Ray would run on to the field. Jim thought that the crowd didn’t like them, but the crowd only wanted to see Ray. In the final year of his career, Ray got to play wide receiver for one play. He got 34 yards on the play. Ray was honored with his own day in the state of Wisconsin. The book ended with a section honoring Ray after he died.

Recommendation: I recommend this book to either male or female ages 15 and up, because the book can teach a lot about life and the NFL. This book can also teach you a lot about Ray Nitschke, a Hall of Fame middle linebacker for the Green Bay Packers.

[Lars · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Autobiography of Ray Nitschke is a very good and inspirational book. It tells you of the childhood struggles Ray went through and how he achieved success against all odds. This book is an autobiography, so you can actually capture Ray’s ideas and thoughts directly, which I think makes this book very interesting. I think the way the story is told is very inspiring. He talks of his problems and how he used them as fuel for his career. I can use this advice in my life in situations where I encounter an obstacle or a problem. This can motivate me to overcome that obstacle. Overall, I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes football or someone who wants to hear a story of how an underprivileged kid became one of the best linebackers to play pro football. 140

[Lucas · Rating 5 out of 5]

I couldn't have asked for a better book about a fantastic player (and person). From his earliest days through his last year as a pro, reading about Mr. Nitschke brought me back to the glory days of when football was played with players that loved the game for what it was, physical and hard hitting, and not so much for the money. Although he died way to soon, his legacy is one that has continued over the last couple of decades.

Anyone that wants to relive the early 1960's and the wins and losses the Packers faced as they won their championships needs to read this book.

[Jeffrey Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a FABULOUS book! Nitschke gives us wonderful insights to his character and to the way he played football in the 1960s. The thing I appreciate in Nitschke's work is that he is humble. That humility shines forth throughout the book - for a professional football player - that's actually a pretty unique thing these days.