"This book's going to raise a howl," promises Deacon Jones. "You wait and see!'
From a small rural town in Florida to the NFL Hall of Fame, this is the story of Deacon's rise to the top of the heap in the National Football League. "Headslap" refers to the lightning move popularized by Jones in the early days of the game, when player could rattle the cage (or at least the helmet) of a blocker by belting him alongside the head. And Deacon did this better than anyone in the game. They weren't jabs; they were full left hooks and right crosses. So devastating was this move that the League outlawed it. "Headslap" has a deeper meaning as well: it's the jarring feeling you get when you realize that things aren't always what they might seem to be.
More than a simple sports story, Headslap brings to full view the NFL during the 1960s and 70s - a time of incredible upheaval and change in the United States. These were tough times for black players as they tried to play the game while confronting prejudice and misconceptions that kept young stars from shining. Neither players nor coaches talk about the amphetamines that were gulped down like aspirin. These were truly incredible years in the history of the sport, and Headslap tells it the way it really was.
John Klawitter (Hollywood. CA) is a director, and author of the novel Crazyhead. Deacon Jones (Anaheim Hills, CA), former defensive lineman for the LA Rams, is currently team ambassador for the Calgary Stampeders and celebrity spokesman for the National Football League.
462 pages (Photo Insert, Appendix of Vital Statistics)
ISBN 1-57392-082-7 Cloth
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