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The Last Season: A Father, a Son, and a Lifetime of College Football
Fathers, sons, and sports are enduring themes of American literature. Here, in this fresh and moving account, a son returns to his native South to spend a special autumn with his ninety-five-year-old dad, sharing the unique joys, disappointments, and life lessons of Saturdays with their beloved Ole Miss Rebels.
After growing up in Jackson, Stuart Stevens built a successful career as a writer and political consultant. But in the fall of 2012, not long after he turned sixty, the presidential campaign he’d worked on suffered a painful defeat. Grappling with a profound sense of loss and mortality, he began asking himself some tough questions, not least about his relationship with his father. The two of them had spent little time together for decades. He made a to invite his father to attend a season of Ole Miss football games together, as they’d done when college football provided a way for his father to guide him through childhood—and to make sense of the troubled South of the 1960s. Now, driving to and from the games, and cheering from the stands, they take stock of their lives as father and son, and as individuals, reminding themselves of their unique, complicated, precious bond.
Poignant and full of heart, but also irreverent and often hilarious, The Last Season is a powerful story of parents and children and of the importance of taking a backward glance together while you still can.
After growing up in Jackson, Stuart Stevens built a successful career as a writer and political consultant. But in the fall of 2012, not long after he turned sixty, the presidential campaign he’d worked on suffered a painful defeat. Grappling with a profound sense of loss and mortality, he began asking himself some tough questions, not least about his relationship with his father. The two of them had spent little time together for decades. He made a to invite his father to attend a season of Ole Miss football games together, as they’d done when college football provided a way for his father to guide him through childhood—and to make sense of the troubled South of the 1960s. Now, driving to and from the games, and cheering from the stands, they take stock of their lives as father and son, and as individuals, reminding themselves of their unique, complicated, precious bond.
Poignant and full of heart, but also irreverent and often hilarious, The Last Season is a powerful story of parents and children and of the importance of taking a backward glance together while you still can.
224 pages, Hardcover
First published September 15, 2015
24 people are currently reading
546 people want to read
About the author
Stuart Stevens
14 books85 followersAn American travel writer, political consultant and Daily Beast columnist. He is the cofounder of Washington, DC-based political media consultancy Stevens & Schriefer Group. He served as a top strategist for Mitt Romney's 2012 presidential campaign.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 83 reviews
January 27, 2016
Really wonderful. A memoir that works is a memoir that has magic, some appeal that embraces nostalgia and those special moments that shape people.
I'm not a football fan, but it is still a beautiful book for those who are or aren't because the words 'memoir' and 'father-son' bonding over the sport captures the magic of the game, which even a non-fan could appreciate. This isn't a book about football - it's a book about the bonding of father and son through tradition and indulging in something they share, an everyday occurrence that speaks volumes when introduced into their lives and their relationship. The author looks back with fond memories, comparing the present with his father through the game, finding the love and joy still existing. They have changed, they have aged, but the bond is real and true.
As I kept reading, I saw it wasn't so much the game but the moment, that special something a person can't put into words, a touching history and connection the game brings to the families who share it.
Above football, it captured the connection of families and fans from all over, recognizing each other at different games, or meeting strangers and binding on this similarity alone, with no awkwardness, no hesitation, just a connection immediately understood. Stuart Stevens, from Mississippi, went through the book with the catchphrase repeated, Hotty Toddy, the spirit of Ole Miss. He dug into the old southern feel and tradition, not leaving out the racism slant that troubled him as he grew up during integration of the school system. Sometimes I thought this was delved on a little too much, almost to the point of dividing the book into two points instead, but it ultimately blends together to bring a lot of pieces into one large picture.
The author acknowledges how fortunate he is to have the upbringing he had, the parents he has to this day, the life and changes he was blessed with, making a note that it is not always so for others:
"That I had this chance was a pure accident of my birth, being lucky enough to have parents who gave me options. We say that in America anyone can become anything he desires, which is probably more true for us than most countries, but that still doesn't make it true."
The author made the transition painless when going from the past to the present, perhaps because they were already so intertwined and connected. Sometimes its tiresome to me to try continuous time shifts but I didn't notice in this book, for it was done that well. Stevens writes beautifully, wordy when it should be, to the point and on focus other times.
"But that night in Oxford, first in the soft dusk of a hot Mississippi evening and then in the darkness that seemed to last too long, the rioters didn't want the world to watch; they wanted the world to go away."
This isn't a book that will cause a long review, other than to say it was wonderful and beautiful, told through real characters and touching moments. Again, there's magic in memoirs.
I received from Penguin Publishing in exchange for an honest review.
December 10, 2016
I grew up in the south, an Atlanta kid who was the son of a Miami when it was Miami kid who was the son of an Atlantan before him. If you are from the south, history is more complicated and yes, more sad.
The south is home to swaths of the most beautiful land in the U.S. It has vast open spaces, rolling hills, mountains, marshes, mighty rivers and azure blue ocean. You can take a Sunday drive and get lost in time- both in the positive sense and the negative sense that forever will have a racial underbelly.
But the south is also home to some of the valuable, unique and innovative things that have ever come from the United States. The south is responsible for the best American music, including jazz, one of America's most unique global exports. The south is responsible for the best American rock and roll, too, whether it is Elvis or Chuck Berry or the blues from the Mississippi delta. It's also home to the best literature, from Faulkner's stunning meditations on grief and family to Hemingway's Key West writings, the pinnacle of a lengthy career.
Somewhere in the middle of this story of sadness and beauty sits college football, the south's Saturday passion. If you're a boy from the south, it's hard to imagine a Saturday in autumn without the game.
There's a regrettably filmed series of advertisements at present on the SEC Network that announce "It Just Means More", hinting at the significance of the game in the south's preeminent athletic conference, the SEC. The slogan works even as the advertisement stumbles.
It does mean more, and it especially means more to countless fathers and sons.
As a dyed-in-the-wool millennial progressive who grew up to be a civil rights lawyer and worked tirelessly for Barack Obama before that in 2008, Stuart Stevens and I are probably not going to see eye to eye on politics.
But what Stevens has done in this book obliterates the differences of politics and age.
Stevens writes a book any son who has followed the sport will love instantly. His book is an astonishing accomplishment that you consume like a fine southern Sunday supper- a masterful commentary on what it means to grow up in the south and beyond that, a poignant story about the eternal, often complicated bond between a father and his son.
Nothing is left out. Stevens elegantly writes about race, white privilege, identity politics, southern conceptions of gender roles, and the relationship college football has with the long, slow march of progress in the south, both economically, racially and politically.
It's a joy to read, and the football writing- which aptly describes great southern teams from the Ole Miss teams of the 50's and 60's to Bear Bryant's Alabama to Tim Tebow's Florida and beyond-- is capable and descriptive.
In the end, this is a must read for any fan of the sport who grew up with the game and their Dad. But it is more than that. It's the best thing the accomplished Stevens has ever written. And one of the better books I've ever read.
The south is home to swaths of the most beautiful land in the U.S. It has vast open spaces, rolling hills, mountains, marshes, mighty rivers and azure blue ocean. You can take a Sunday drive and get lost in time- both in the positive sense and the negative sense that forever will have a racial underbelly.
But the south is also home to some of the valuable, unique and innovative things that have ever come from the United States. The south is responsible for the best American music, including jazz, one of America's most unique global exports. The south is responsible for the best American rock and roll, too, whether it is Elvis or Chuck Berry or the blues from the Mississippi delta. It's also home to the best literature, from Faulkner's stunning meditations on grief and family to Hemingway's Key West writings, the pinnacle of a lengthy career.
Somewhere in the middle of this story of sadness and beauty sits college football, the south's Saturday passion. If you're a boy from the south, it's hard to imagine a Saturday in autumn without the game.
There's a regrettably filmed series of advertisements at present on the SEC Network that announce "It Just Means More", hinting at the significance of the game in the south's preeminent athletic conference, the SEC. The slogan works even as the advertisement stumbles.
It does mean more, and it especially means more to countless fathers and sons.
As a dyed-in-the-wool millennial progressive who grew up to be a civil rights lawyer and worked tirelessly for Barack Obama before that in 2008, Stuart Stevens and I are probably not going to see eye to eye on politics.
But what Stevens has done in this book obliterates the differences of politics and age.
Stevens writes a book any son who has followed the sport will love instantly. His book is an astonishing accomplishment that you consume like a fine southern Sunday supper- a masterful commentary on what it means to grow up in the south and beyond that, a poignant story about the eternal, often complicated bond between a father and his son.
Nothing is left out. Stevens elegantly writes about race, white privilege, identity politics, southern conceptions of gender roles, and the relationship college football has with the long, slow march of progress in the south, both economically, racially and politically.
It's a joy to read, and the football writing- which aptly describes great southern teams from the Ole Miss teams of the 50's and 60's to Bear Bryant's Alabama to Tim Tebow's Florida and beyond-- is capable and descriptive.
In the end, this is a must read for any fan of the sport who grew up with the game and their Dad. But it is more than that. It's the best thing the accomplished Stevens has ever written. And one of the better books I've ever read.
December 6, 2017
It seemed appropriate timing for me to finally pick up this little father-son, college football love fest. My son had gifted it to us some time ago (or was it just to his dad?) No matter. The end of another college football season was nearly here, and the anniversary of my late father’s birthday reminded me of how quickly time passes. The author’s account of a season of Ole Miss football games shared by a 95 year-old father and his adult son included vivid recollections of the turbulent Civil Rights era interspersed with anecdotes of sports, family, World War II, as well as the current season of football. I found it to be charming yet bittersweet. “Life is short...” as they say and while many recognize that fact “Time is of the essence” is just as true. Stuart Stevens had an unforgettable season with his father before it was too late. Thanks for sharing your dad with me. Hotty Toddy!
January 8, 2022
Great book. I love to mix in memoirs to my reading and had this book recommended by a coworker. As someone who loves the Ole Miss Rebels and grew up on college football, this was a fantastic read to extend the recent season by a couple more days. Even for those without a tie to Ole Miss or a love for college football, the relationship between Stevens and his father, their reflection on the time that has passed and what about their lives made them whole is comforting. I imagine most readers, especially those southerners who grew up in similar cultures, can relate and appreciate their stories.
October 13, 2025
Heartwarming true story of a son and his 95 year old father spending the Fall together at Ole Miss football games.
November 21, 2022
A memoir about a man spending a season of following Ole Miss football with his aging father. I'm not a huge fan of college football, but I did like this. Stuart Stevens adds in memories of his childhood, both memories attached to Ole Miss football, as well as memories of growing up in the South. Would that we all had the opportunity to have that "last" with our parents. To have the chance to make the most of it.
October 7, 2025
“The essence of sport is disappointment masked by periodic bursts of joy … The pain of any moment can be balanced against imagining how much worse it could be.” (pg 85)
September 21, 2019
Given the presidential campaign that Stuart Stevens was a part of in 2012 - he and I probably differ on many, if not most, political issues. When I heard a TV interview of his, however, I knew I had to read this book - and I am very glad I did.
The book is mostly about a season of Ole Miss football that Stevens attends with his 95-year old father...but politics - both local and national, both present day and of the civil rights era - are woven throughout this thoughtful and heartfelt memoir.
Many of Stevens fondest memories of childhood involve football. Watching football on TV and in person - and specifically - the Ole Miss football team. Stevens was raised in Mississippi - in a state and a family that was steeped in football. His father, who he clearly idolized (and still does, I think), was the main person teaching him about the game they loved, and through the game, a great deal about life and of the troubled times they lived in.
“We say that in America anyone can become anything he desires, which is probably more true for us than any country in the world, but that still doesn’t make it true. And nowhere in America have circumstances of birth been more defining than Mississippi. With my parents, I won the lottery: loving parents, every possible advantage, and, yes, born white. All Mississippi stories are eventually about race, and mine is no exception. The path of my life wasn’t fully determined the day I was born, but the choices I might be afforded were certainly a gift of birth and nothing I had earned.” (His acknowledgement of this, and the fact that both of his parents were Democrats in 1960's Mississippi makes me shake my head as I try and figure out how he ended up on Romney's campaign.)
As the football season plays on, Stevens and his parents travel around for various games and meet others even more intense about the game than they were. When they were on the road at the same time as the Alabama/Auburn game, a woman in a retail store chided Steven's mother about joking about the rivalry. “Honey, we don’t joke about that sort of thing,” the woman said flatly. She didn’t smile. “This ain’t casual like Ole Miss and Miss State.” “I wouldn’t call that casual,” my mother said, laughing. “I would, sweetie,” the woman said, staring coolly at my mother.”
The book makes it clear that football is a religion in the South. A religion that Stevens tries to explain to those not of the south - even while he makes it clear that he know that anyone not raised there would never truly understand. Would never truly feel the passion, the heartache, the wild joy that a southern fan did.
“All those years of games with my dad had taught me the lesson all true fans painfully learn, that the essence of sport is disappointment masked by periodic bursts of joy nurtured by denial.”
There is a great deal of humility, appreciation and quiet joy in "The Last Season". Many times, Stevens is able to take a step back and take a mental snapshot of a moment. Sometimes it is a moment that is beautifully similar to a good one he experienced as a boy, sometimes it is a moment that starkly shows the differences between the times...and many times it is a moment with his father that he knows may be one of the last ones.
I loved this book. The descriptions of the fans, the schools, the party atmosphere before the game (and the quite atmosphere after a loss), the season changes and the fierce love this man has for his father were wonderfully evocative. And the football - the descriptions of games (even for a fair-weather fan like myself) was simply gripping.
“The interception was only one play, early in a long game, but it was enough to let you believe that tonight had a shot to be one of those magical games when luck and chance had decided to bless our side, if only for a few hours.”
Stevens now has many of those magical hours of memories that he won't forget - and neither will I.
The book is mostly about a season of Ole Miss football that Stevens attends with his 95-year old father...but politics - both local and national, both present day and of the civil rights era - are woven throughout this thoughtful and heartfelt memoir.
Many of Stevens fondest memories of childhood involve football. Watching football on TV and in person - and specifically - the Ole Miss football team. Stevens was raised in Mississippi - in a state and a family that was steeped in football. His father, who he clearly idolized (and still does, I think), was the main person teaching him about the game they loved, and through the game, a great deal about life and of the troubled times they lived in.
“We say that in America anyone can become anything he desires, which is probably more true for us than any country in the world, but that still doesn’t make it true. And nowhere in America have circumstances of birth been more defining than Mississippi. With my parents, I won the lottery: loving parents, every possible advantage, and, yes, born white. All Mississippi stories are eventually about race, and mine is no exception. The path of my life wasn’t fully determined the day I was born, but the choices I might be afforded were certainly a gift of birth and nothing I had earned.” (His acknowledgement of this, and the fact that both of his parents were Democrats in 1960's Mississippi makes me shake my head as I try and figure out how he ended up on Romney's campaign.)
As the football season plays on, Stevens and his parents travel around for various games and meet others even more intense about the game than they were. When they were on the road at the same time as the Alabama/Auburn game, a woman in a retail store chided Steven's mother about joking about the rivalry. “Honey, we don’t joke about that sort of thing,” the woman said flatly. She didn’t smile. “This ain’t casual like Ole Miss and Miss State.” “I wouldn’t call that casual,” my mother said, laughing. “I would, sweetie,” the woman said, staring coolly at my mother.”
The book makes it clear that football is a religion in the South. A religion that Stevens tries to explain to those not of the south - even while he makes it clear that he know that anyone not raised there would never truly understand. Would never truly feel the passion, the heartache, the wild joy that a southern fan did.
“All those years of games with my dad had taught me the lesson all true fans painfully learn, that the essence of sport is disappointment masked by periodic bursts of joy nurtured by denial.”
There is a great deal of humility, appreciation and quiet joy in "The Last Season". Many times, Stevens is able to take a step back and take a mental snapshot of a moment. Sometimes it is a moment that is beautifully similar to a good one he experienced as a boy, sometimes it is a moment that starkly shows the differences between the times...and many times it is a moment with his father that he knows may be one of the last ones.
I loved this book. The descriptions of the fans, the schools, the party atmosphere before the game (and the quite atmosphere after a loss), the season changes and the fierce love this man has for his father were wonderfully evocative. And the football - the descriptions of games (even for a fair-weather fan like myself) was simply gripping.
“The interception was only one play, early in a long game, but it was enough to let you believe that tonight had a shot to be one of those magical games when luck and chance had decided to bless our side, if only for a few hours.”
Stevens now has many of those magical hours of memories that he won't forget - and neither will I.
December 18, 2015
Consumer alert: I was able to read this book through the First to Read program with Penguin Random House. While I may have had access to an early copy for free, I feel confident in saying this opportunity did not in any way influence my opinion of the book.
It wasn't the title that drew me in, it was the premise. The idea of a father and son sharing one final season of football. It was the idea of reconnecting, of making precious memories with an aging parent, that appealed to me. I'm not sure if this is because I worry about a future without my parents or if it's because I worry about a future when my children will be busy living their own lives and will sometimes forget about my husband and me. I suspect it was a combination of the two.
Most of the time, I take my chances in the First to Read program and let luck determine whether or not the title I'm interested in is delivered to my inbox. This time, though, I was motivated to spend some of the points I had earned to reserve a copy. I'm glad I did.
This book is so far out of my normal reading groove that I don't even know where to really start with my review. As my bookshelves will show, I don't read a lot of autobiographies. My reading preferences tend to navigate toward fiction when I want to be entertained and academic-based research texts when I want to learn something. Autobiographies are a relatively new genre for me and I haven't always been impressed. Luckily, this book delivered.
Mr. Stevens did a wonderful job of weaving his childhood memories into the season-long adventure of taking his father to the Ole Miss games both at home and abroad. As he stepped out of cars, strode along streets, and visited the before and after parties with father beside him, he compared the childhood memory to the present-day realities. He offered relevant historical data in an effort to explain fandom and rivalries, to flesh out university allegiances and the complexities of race and ethnicity in these SEC schools.
I will admit the passages about the games themselves - about the touchdowns, the yardage gained or the passes missed - were rather a chore to read for this admittedly non-fan. I'm just grateful they were brief because it didn't take long to get back to the good stuff. The growing awareness of his parents' lives over the last few years was touching, especially when he acknowledged how his dad's advanced age and increasing limitations were affecting his mother. I also appreciated how this last season was a great means of self-reflection and personal growth.
It wasn't the title that drew me in, it was the premise. The idea of a father and son sharing one final season of football. It was the idea of reconnecting, of making precious memories with an aging parent, that appealed to me. I'm not sure if this is because I worry about a future without my parents or if it's because I worry about a future when my children will be busy living their own lives and will sometimes forget about my husband and me. I suspect it was a combination of the two.
Most of the time, I take my chances in the First to Read program and let luck determine whether or not the title I'm interested in is delivered to my inbox. This time, though, I was motivated to spend some of the points I had earned to reserve a copy. I'm glad I did.
This book is so far out of my normal reading groove that I don't even know where to really start with my review. As my bookshelves will show, I don't read a lot of autobiographies. My reading preferences tend to navigate toward fiction when I want to be entertained and academic-based research texts when I want to learn something. Autobiographies are a relatively new genre for me and I haven't always been impressed. Luckily, this book delivered.
Mr. Stevens did a wonderful job of weaving his childhood memories into the season-long adventure of taking his father to the Ole Miss games both at home and abroad. As he stepped out of cars, strode along streets, and visited the before and after parties with father beside him, he compared the childhood memory to the present-day realities. He offered relevant historical data in an effort to explain fandom and rivalries, to flesh out university allegiances and the complexities of race and ethnicity in these SEC schools.
I will admit the passages about the games themselves - about the touchdowns, the yardage gained or the passes missed - were rather a chore to read for this admittedly non-fan. I'm just grateful they were brief because it didn't take long to get back to the good stuff. The growing awareness of his parents' lives over the last few years was touching, especially when he acknowledged how his dad's advanced age and increasing limitations were affecting his mother. I also appreciated how this last season was a great means of self-reflection and personal growth.
October 23, 2015
What was there not to like about this book? It was about football and the love that father and son had for each other and football, Ole Miss football, to be exact. You don't have to be a football fan to enjoy this book. You just have to be a fan of family and the love that they have for each other.
August 20, 2017
I'm excited for college football season and I wanted to escape the shit-show that is currently our national government. So this father-son story about the love of college football seemed perfectly timed for me. A great story by a political player who brings his aging father out for one more tour around the SEC and their beloved Ole Miss team. Sadly, as Stevens told old stories from the Civil Rights era and how integration impacted the game in ways he didn't originally appreciate, we lived through the travesty of Charlottesville and a president's inability to respond with some modicum of decency. So the book wasn't quite the escape I hoped it would be. But beyond that, this was a sweet book that made me appreciate the memories I made with my own father, and the possibilities that exist for me to forge additional and awesome memories with my son.
June 3, 2021
I'm not a football fan and there is a LOT of football in this book. On and on about punts, kickoffs and downs. Not only that it is about a team whose rally call is "Hotty Toddy". That doesn't stand up very well to Alabama's "Roll Tide". Between the football it is about a 60 year old son taking his 95 year old father to a few last games while trying to relive his (and the father's) lost youth as rabid football fans. The father/son bonding and reliving is nice for them, I don't belong in the middle.
July 6, 2018
A fun, moving read of a campaign manager (Mitt Romney's) seeking meaning in his life by sharing a college football season with his 95-year old father. I liked the author, his father, and mother. Southern football fans? They can be equally hospitable and obnoxious, but I'll never question their passion. A great book and just the right length.
March 26, 2019
I enjoyed the stories of the son and his father so much as their time together awakened the bond between them. I was never one to get excited about college football, or any other sport, for that matter, but I do miss the autumnal gatherings at my university. I understood fully the comfort and happiness the two of them shared. An okay feel-good read.
December 23, 2021
Solid, but underwhelming. Some of his metaphors are wonderful. There are good stories throughout, and a good grasp of what it’s like to watch football with your father, but it isn’t all tied together nicely. There are often random, unnecessary details that fail to entertain or inform. But overall, a well-written examination of what it means to share football with your father.
March 3, 2024
A somewhat slim memoir dealing mostly with growing up in the south and being a rabid (is that redundant?) fan of SEC football. I truly enjoyed the bond between the author and his 95-year old father. I’ll say this as someone who is a little bit “up there” in age myself, Stuart’s dad is a real “gamer”!
February 16, 2018
A breezy, well written and easy read, but ultimately every time he leaves his childhood or his relationship with his dad to dwell on how only southerners understand football, the tone is just too masturbatory and offputting.
October 7, 2019
Read this on the way to my first SEC Football game: Ole Miss vs. Vanderbilt. What an exceptional story! I learned so much, and made the weekend in Oxford, MS ever better! But don't wait for a football game to read..............
June 8, 2021
I loved this book! I went to Ole Miss and my daughter is there now. I thought it was a wonderful story that made me laugh, cry and feel extremely thankful for my family and my love for Ole Miss and southern traditions.
October 8, 2021
A GREAT BOOK ABOUT FOOTBALL AND THE OLD SOUTH.AMAZING IN ITS REVEALING HOW THINGS HAVE CHANGED SO MUCH OVER TIME,WHEN YOU LOOK BACK ON THE POLITICS AND RACISM.I WOULD RECOMMEND TO ANYONE WHO LOVES COLLEGE FOOTBALL. BOB
March 21, 2018
3.5 stars
February 3, 2019
If any sport was a connection between you and a family member than you will enjoy this book.
December 4, 2020
A heartwarming story of a father and son relationship based on the love of the Ole Miss Rebels.
March 5, 2021
Enjoyed this read immensely, as it paralleled many of my life and college football experiences that I had with my late father.
September 1, 2021
Real good. quick read. More about growing up the the 1960’s south and the south’s attachment to SEC football than just the story of one Ole Miss season.
Read
December 8, 2022I love this book in every way.
December 9, 2022
A wonderful story, if you love SEC football this is a must read.
February 26, 2023
A great book explaining the significance of Fall Saturdays in the South and how the memories of those games continuously unite us with our loved ones. A must-read for all SEC fans.
December 6, 2023
Great story that shows the significance of a father’s love.
February 3, 2024
Great book about a dad and his son doing something that they loved to do together: watch their favorite team play. A good reminder of what life is all about and what is important.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 83 reviews