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Red Cagle: West Point’s Three-Time All-American
Chris Cagle, nicknamed "Red" after Red Grange, was a football phenom in the 1920s. When Notre Dame's Knute Rockne gave his famous "win one for the Gipper" speech, he was talking about beating Cagle and West Point. This fascinating biography of the Louisiana native is a rousing tale of athletic competition, fateful young love, and an untimely, mysterious death, based on interviews with Cagle's few surviving relatives and hundreds of documents, newspapers articles, and archival film.
208 pages, Paperback
Published October 15, 2019
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January 17, 2023
Christian Keener Cagle was a born athlete. Nicknamed “Red,” Cagle was destined for greatness. From a rural upbringing in Louisiana to college at West Point, Cagle excelled at any sport he tried. His competitive nature followed him throughout his short but fascinating life.
Red Cagle: West Point’s Three-Time All-American, by Cathy C. Post, is a riveting biographical account of an extraordinary athlete. Cagle never set out to be a nationally known athlete. He grew up as a true cowboy on his family’s ranch in Louisiana. He loved the sport of football like he did all other sports. He was a natural, despite his relatively small stature for a football player. He was lightning-fast, and colleges picked up on his prowess. Southwestern Louisiana Institute and the prestigious West Point vied for his attention and won. The National Football League came knocking, and Cagle answered. He gained an extraordinary level of fame while representing his chosen schools and then the NFL, but it did come at a price. Should he stay true to his sweetheart, Marion? Should he break a code of honor? What about all his fans flocking to arenas to witness his amazing athleticism? How can one person keep everyone happy?
Author Cathy C. Post is a master at drawing in the reader with her smart inclusion of details and the way in which she is able to give readers a look at the inner workings of West Point. This compelling biography will appeal to readers that have a love of football because of her play-by-play recounting of Cagle’s football games in which he participated. The games offer so much: danger, camaraderie, and fierce competition, and readers are able to understand and appreciate this due to the authors fantastic writing. Post puts the reader right in the middle of it all. The author also provides an interesting look at the history of football such as when President Theodore Roosevelt “slammed down the hammer". He vowed to abolish the game unless "major changes were put in place." This insistence from President Roosevelt led to the creation of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It's things like this that make this book enlightening as well as entertaining.
Fans of sports biographies will delight in the details of a young hero out of the South in the 1920s playing “America’s game.” Readers of all kinds will enjoy Red Cagle: West Point’s Three-Time All-American because of Cathy C. Post's engaging storytelling.
Red Cagle: West Point’s Three-Time All-American, by Cathy C. Post, is a riveting biographical account of an extraordinary athlete. Cagle never set out to be a nationally known athlete. He grew up as a true cowboy on his family’s ranch in Louisiana. He loved the sport of football like he did all other sports. He was a natural, despite his relatively small stature for a football player. He was lightning-fast, and colleges picked up on his prowess. Southwestern Louisiana Institute and the prestigious West Point vied for his attention and won. The National Football League came knocking, and Cagle answered. He gained an extraordinary level of fame while representing his chosen schools and then the NFL, but it did come at a price. Should he stay true to his sweetheart, Marion? Should he break a code of honor? What about all his fans flocking to arenas to witness his amazing athleticism? How can one person keep everyone happy?
Author Cathy C. Post is a master at drawing in the reader with her smart inclusion of details and the way in which she is able to give readers a look at the inner workings of West Point. This compelling biography will appeal to readers that have a love of football because of her play-by-play recounting of Cagle’s football games in which he participated. The games offer so much: danger, camaraderie, and fierce competition, and readers are able to understand and appreciate this due to the authors fantastic writing. Post puts the reader right in the middle of it all. The author also provides an interesting look at the history of football such as when President Theodore Roosevelt “slammed down the hammer". He vowed to abolish the game unless "major changes were put in place." This insistence from President Roosevelt led to the creation of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It's things like this that make this book enlightening as well as entertaining.
Fans of sports biographies will delight in the details of a young hero out of the South in the 1920s playing “America’s game.” Readers of all kinds will enjoy Red Cagle: West Point’s Three-Time All-American because of Cathy C. Post's engaging storytelling.
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