Going Long: The Wild Ten-Year Saga of the Renegade American Football League in the Words of Those Who Lived It

by Jeff Miller

â Outlandish, informative, and above all, funny.â

â Sports Illustrated

Now in paperback, Going Long brings the incredible story of the maverick American Football League to life through the words of the players, coaches, owners, and others who lived it. This story of the AFL is filled with legendary names such as Bob Griese, Joe Namath, Lamar Hunt, Jack Kemp, Len Dawson, and more. From the contentious formation of the league, to paychecks bouncing as often as footballs, to improbable Super Bowl victories, Going Long presents the colorful and sometimes bizarre tale of eight teams and a league that refused to die.

Genres: Sports, Football, Nonfiction

398 pages, Hardcover

First published July 24, 2003

About the author

Jeff Miller has been a sports journalist for more than forty years. He has worked for the Dallas Morning News, CBSSports.com and ESPN.com. Miller is the author of six books, including The Game Changers, which detailed the racial integration of major college football in Texas. He lives with his wife, Frances, in DeSoto, Texas. They have four children and one grandchild.

Reviews

[Oliver Bateman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fine oral history, but it's no match for Terry Pluto's tremendous Loose Balls. The AFL, which featured some interesting stylistic innovations and did indeed give many African-Americans an opportunity to ply their trade, was "wild" and "rowdy" (two adjectives emphasized in the jacket copy) only in comparison to the always-sedate "No Fun League." Nonetheless, Going Long offers solid season-by-season coverage of a neglected moment in American sports history (the public memory of coaches like Sid Gillman, who trained everyone from Al Davis to Chuck Noll, and players like Jack Kemp and Tom Flores has faded with the passage of time), with a handful of entertaining anecdotes about genuine oddballs like mammoth Raiders defenders Dan Birdwell and Ben Davidson, itinerant linebacker and pro wrestling "Indian chief" Wahoo McDaniel (the first player to have his Christian name appear on the back of his jersey), and mentally ill Patriots coach Clive Rush (who, to his credit, was obsessed with fielding an all-African-American "black power defense," which he hoped would land him a feature in Ebony). Although I'd recommend this book to serious sports fans, its inaccessibility--a too-short statistical appendix and a main narrative that suffers from the author's unwillingness to occasionally refresh our memories about who these 170 contributors are (I found myself flipping back to the "cast of characters" after the table of contents, and losing valuable time in the process)--would probably alienate the casual reader. Then again: Why on earth would a "casual reader" decide to read something like this?

[Ralphz · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun look at the longshot that changed pro football: the American Football League.

Going Long is a skeleton of a story filled out with long quotes from interviews. It's not the best way to present the information, but in this case, the story is crazy enough that the method doesn't hurt too much.

If you know anything about the AFL, you know the most-told anecdotes: Joe Namath's guarantee, "We'll kick to the clock," the "Heidi" game, etc. They're all here, and more.

It's a fun look back at a league that almost didn't make it, but I'm glad it did.

More reviews at my WordPress site, Ralphsbooks.

[Kim · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really did *want* to read this book, because I was interested in learning more about the AFL after last year's anniversary. But it was really just a string of quotes from people involved (which maybe I should have figured out from the subtitle) without much narrative structure. And frankly, I find that a bit lazy and more to the point, difficult to read. So I gave up on it.

[Bill Palmer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yes, for what it is, it gets 5 stars. I read the names of players in this book who I'd have probably gone the rest of my life and never again thought of. I remember watching those AFL Chiefs-Raiders and Broncos-Chargers matchups in the late Sunday afternoon slot, after whatever NFL game had been televised earlier. And it did seem like it was a more exciting, wide open style of play with more genuinely colorful characters. But my father had been a Packers fan and remained so well into the 60s, so in our household there always seemed to be a cloud of doubt hanging over the authenticity of those old AFL games. Until '69, the Jets and Namath, of course. And my minds eye image or recollection of those games is of dusty ballfields, which stands to reason as many of the AFL teams played in stadiums designed for baseball and the dirt infields accounted for why those games did seem dusty. There is little to no chance we'll ever again see anything like the AFL again in professional sports. Everything is locked up tight and put away safe and snug. At all costs, protect The Shield. But man, the AFL was fun. And Miller's book is an excellent reflection of it.

[Greg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oral histories can be a tricky thing. For every book that does it right (SNL, ESPN, MTV (I Want My MTV...the best oral history ever), there are several (there is a oral history of CAA that is brutal) that can turn into a mess. Put this one in the former category. Super informative. Detailed, but not bogged down in minutiae. Some of the big players in the AFL don't appear in the book (Al Davis...but not for lack of trying), but a lot of them do, and they have stories. Lots of stories, with a lot of characters. Even wonder why the Bengals seem have to the same colors as the Browns? How the Kansas City team got it's name? That there would be no Oakland Raiders if the original owners of the Minnesota Vikings hadn't defected to the NFL? It's hard to imagine today's teams playing in the conditions that some of these teams started with. Well written book Highly recommended for football historians or those in former AFL towns.

[Donald Paulsrud · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are a football fan and followed football in the 60's and 70's this is the book for you. I enjoy reading from the guys who were actually there and played during that time. It was a trip down memory lane for me and I really enjoyed it. Too bad some of the other players didn't want to be interviewed or did not reply to requests for interviews. Good book for football fans!

[Brent Darling · Rating 5 out of 5]

A season-by-season account of the American Football League, as told by the players, owners, coaches and writers who were part of that era. Also looks at what went on behind the scenes.

Very enjoyable book, highly recommended.

[JBP · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this oral history of the American Football League that covered its run in the 1960s before merging with the NFL after the fourth Super Bowl, but was disappointed it wasn't just a bit rowdier. I thought it would have more humorous stories about people and events in this league that started out barely surviving and ended on a two game Super Bowl winning streak. Mostly just a straight up league history told year by year w/ off-shoots onto particular teams/players. The oral history element should have made it more ribald and lively, it doesn't really have that feel unfortunately. Still, worth reading if you are interested in the AFL or football when it was played wayyyy different than it is now--Roger Goodell would fine or suspend pretty much every player on defense with these new czar rules to take away intimidation and toughness from the sport. But, that's another subject altogether.

[David Ward · Rating 2 out of 5]

Going Long: The Wild Ten-Year Saga of the Renegade American Football League In the Words of Those Who Lived It by Jeff Miller (Contemporary Books 2003)(796.33264) is, rather than a collection of colorful and funny stories, a treatise about "following the money" back when the league was being formed to see who was really important (in the eyes of the author). I'd give it a 3/10. Finished 11/3/11.

[Louis · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent history of the birth of the AFL right up until the merger with the NFL.The book is basically snippets of interviews with dozens of players ,owners and journalists.A really great look back at how sports and America used to be.We also get to the bottom of the "Heidi" scnadal.

[Elcraig · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very good book and necessary shelf-collector for anyone interested in American Football League (AFL) history. There is a reason the Oakland Raiders paid homage to the AFL on their Super Bowl XI rings. This book tells the story why.

[Rick]

Very good book. Lots of funny anecdotes too.