Cheating Is Encouraged: A Hard-Nosed History of the 1970s Raiders

by Mike Siani, Kristine Setting Clark

Straight from the mouths of the legends of the Silver and Black, Cheating Is Encouraged recapitulates the many as infamous stories from the last team to play “outlaw” football.Regardless of whether you loved or hated them, the Oakland Raiders of the 1970s were an amusing cast of outlaws, misfits, and anomalies that made up one of the greatest pro football teams of their era. The Raiders’ roster consisted of a collection of mavericks and rebels, some with behavioral issues, such as John “Tooz” Matuszak and Lyle Alzado, as well as castoffs like the aging George Blanda and the sandlot player Otis Sistrunk, who were passed over or disregarded by other NFL teams. To say that this group of outlaws had “attitude” would be a gross understatement. They were the Oakland Raiders, the Silver and Black, and Al Davis’s dream of “Just win, baby.”Gridiron characters (such as the Snake, Foo, the Assassin, the Hit Man, Dr. Death, and many others) chronicle the notorious on- and off-the-field exploits, away-game adventures, and the party-hard attitudes that are reflected in the team’s intimidating and glorified mix of renegades. Cheating Is Encouraged defines an era that can only be considered the last days of “real football played by real men.”Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Sports Publishing imprint, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in sports-books about baseball, pro football, college football, pro and college basketball, hockey, or soccer, we have a book about your sport or your team.Whether you are a New York Yankees fan or hail from Red Sox nation; whether you are a die-hard Green Bay Packers or Dallas Cowboys fan; whether you root for the Kentucky Wildcats, Louisville Cardinals, UCLA Bruins, or Kansas Jayhawks; whether you route for the Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, or Los Angeles Kings; we have a book for you. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to publishing books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked by other publishers and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.

Genres: Sports, Football

318 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 1, 2015

Reviews

[Cwn_annwn_13 · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I still don't think the definitive book on the Raiders during the Madden era has been written this was full of great history of the team and wild stories both on and off the field involving the characters that played for the Raiders during the 1970s.

[RICK "SHAQ" GOLDSTEIN · Rating 4 out of 5]

RICK “SHAQ” GOLDSTEIN SAYS: THE OAKLAND RAIDERS WERE MY & FOOTBALL’S OUTLAWS… NO MERCY… NO PRISONERS… AND PARTY LIKE IT’S YOUR LAST DAY!
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As a lifelong “Raiduh” fan… and an original PSL holder when the Raiduh's came back to their home in Oakland… and not missing a game for fifteen years… I have read almost everything of substance regarding my “Raiduh” brethren. There are many hilarious stories in here… that I have read before… but there are many more here that I have either read for the first time… or time has just dulled the memory. Since this is co-authored by former “Raiduh” Mike Siani… I believe that many of the current day interviewees… are probably more receptive to releasing a little more… of the past… than they would to mere civilians. Additionally… Mike of course has many of his own recollections to share.

The Raiders of the seventies… were simply one of (not the greatest… one of) the greatest dynasties of all-time. In addition to their one Super Bowl victory… their numerous Super Bowl Appearances… their unbelievable amount of division/conference championships and their phenomenal won/lost record (all documented within… including game by game recaps of the entire 1970’s)… but just as importantly… there literally has *NEVER* been such a collection of “adorable” talented odd-balls! Or as the dangerous Mr. Bob Brown said during his Hall Of Fame induction speech… “”I WOULD LIKE TO THANK AL DAVIS FOR GIVING ME THE OPPORTUNITY TO PLAY WITH… THE GREATEST… WILDEST… MOST TALENTED… GROUP… OF MIXED NUTS… EVER ASSEMBLED… ANYWHERE!”
That about says it all! But what the reader gets… are not only the stories themselves… but the reaction from the other players… about the on the field heroics and accomplishments… as well as the just as infamous… off the field… (Well I hesitate to simply call them accomplishments… you know what I mean!)

A great example of that… would be the aforementioned Mr. Brown. The other Hall OF Fame ballplayers… were in awe of Brown’s size… in awe… oh… OK… afraid… of his strength… as well as the suitcase full of guns he brought to training camp… and one night a flurry of bullets were shot into Hall Of Famer Willie Brown’s bed… with him STILL IN IT!

“Raiduh” fans… as well as mythical outlaw fans… won’t be able to put this book down. To be frank there is one thing that bugs me… an all-time Raider fan… and that is how the author “over uses” all the phrases… over used in “real life”… Commitment To Excellence… Pride And Poise… The Greatness Of The Raiders Is In Their Future… etc. etc. I mean Ad Nauseam! Additionally… there are a number of typos… but what the hell… a Raider wrote it! These are the only reasons I took a star away. Taking a star away does not change the fact that I wholeheartedly recommend this book to anyone who ever wore silver and black with pride… any NFL fan… and any outlaw… and that includes former Black Panthers… and former… and current Hells Angels who all loved the Raiders… and are part of the treasure trove of stories and anecdotes included.

There is one page near the back of the book… that nails home my earlier claim… that the 70’s “Raiduh” ’s are one of the greatest dynasties of all-time… and that page is entitled *OAKLAND RAIDERS OF THE 1970’S IN THE PRO FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME*. A total of thirteen Raiders (in addition to players… Al Davis… John Madden… Ron Wolf) Bob Brown was enshrined as a Philadelphia Eagle but played his last three Hall Of Fame years with the Oakland Raiders… and as written above… he personally stated how memorable they were… by the way… did I mention that after joining the Raiders… how at one of his first practices he broke one of the legs of the wooden goal post… on the Raider’s practice feel with his forearm… and the entire goal post crumbled to the ground?

If I didn’t mention it… it’s in the book… you better buy it!

[Shelly♥ · Rating 3 out of 5]

I give this book a 5 for the nostalgic content of the 1970s Raiders and a 1 for the editing and flow of the book which is the worst I have ever seen.

I have read several of the Raider books mentioned in the bibliography and I'm quite sure the author just cut and pasted sections of these books, tying them together with his own often confusing bridges of details. Heck, after the book details the exciting season that gets the Raiders to the Super Bowl, the score listed has the Steelers winning the game.

I was able to follow the tale, being versed in Raider lore from yesteryear, but if you're not...you might be utterly confused.

[Tamara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Needed proof reading before publishing.
However,
This book makes me proud to be a Raiders' fan.
John Madden was my kind of life coach.
Full of grace.
He had a way of making a bunch of hotshot misfits
a badass winning team
of football players.

[Robert Roberson · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are a Raiders fan, this is a good book, which accounts for my rating. However, the typos and other errors make it a tough read. Based on the errors in the text, I would give the editors 1 star.

[Jeff Walzer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Must read for any Raiders fan

A wonderfully and very thorough book about the Raiders on and off the field. I knew they were good but never realized how great they were in their hey day.

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

I grew up watching and loving all the events described in the book having been a raiders fan for most of my life. It's a 3 star because of poor editing writing quality.

[Jeff Olson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome...Just read it, baby!!!

[Terry Geiger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great inside stories of a great era, needs some copy editing though.

[Erin Haight · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was simply a disappointment and maybe that's my fault for not reading the subtitle carefully enough. I assumed, incorrectly, that a book about the 1970s Oakland Raiders written by Mike Siani, a pretty decent third wide receiver during the team's peak in that decade, would offer the story from his point of view. In fact, it was not much more than an aggregation of quotes taken from other published works by the players and coaches of the era, supplemented by a quick game-by-game rundown of the decade. That's not to say it wasn't fun to read the mostly-familiar stories again, but if Siani is going to try a quick profit-taking on his name, he should at least have to do some work. All this might have been forgiven if the book itself wasn't such an unholy mess. I don't know if it was rushed to print or no one actually read the published draft prior to its release, but there was apparently no copy-editing at all. Punctuation, spelling, and narrative continuity were absolute disasters. Much of the book consisted of direct quotes, but in dozens, if not hundreds of instances, it was completely unclear who was speaking. Frankly, this should be an embarrassment to all involved. Sure, Siani is an ex-jock whose name is there to sell copies, but Kristing Setting Clark, the co-author who has apparently written these sorts of books before, should have learned something about the craft, but hasn't. It gets a second star because I'm a fan of the team, but honestly, I wouldn't wish this book on anyone until it gets a complete re-write.

[michael rike · Rating 1 out of 5]

Didn't learn anything new here.

I have seen many shows about the Oakland / LA Raiders on NFL network and shows about the old AFL days or other books about Al Davis and the Raiders of the 70s and I didn't read anything new that I already know. Don't buy this book if you already have the history of the Raiders and I am not even a Raiders fan but I loved the way they played football back in the 70s when I was a kid.

[Todd Kalinski · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite possibly one of the worst editing jobs to come across the press. Besides that, tho, it's the story of the Oakland Raiders of the 1970s. And there are some stories. Some really good ones. If you can figure out the jumbled chronology, it's one hell of a read. Too bad you can't. Skyhorse Publishing Inc., do you have a vacancy for an Editor?

[Steven Lomelino · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book isn't written. It's pieced together. Quotes, broadcast transcripts, game summaries, and book excerpts make up the majority of it. Oh, and Siani should ask his editor for a refund.