{ "item_title" : "Strike Season", "item_author" : [" Michael Eck "], "item_description" : "Friday Night Lights meets Lord of the Flies in this unforgettable true story of a high school football team that banded together when a teacher’s strike left them without coaches.Michael Eck had always been captivated by his father’s love of Notre Dame football. Now, they were recruiting him to play quarterback. But just two games into his high school senior season, his teachers went on strike, and the coaches followed. With the season canceled and their college dreams in jeopardy, Michael and his three co-captains had a daring idea: What if we coached ourselves? Secretly thinking this gave them leverage in negotiations with the union, the school board shockingly agreed. Facing the roar of picket lines and corralling adrenaline-charged teammates, the Mt. Lebanon Blue Devils became more than symbols of defiance—they were unwitting pawns in an adults’ game. Every play carried weight; every practice and victory risked unraveling into chaos. And as scouts watched and headlines chronicled their season, Michael and his teammates navigated the unprecedented responsibility of holding the team together, winning without coaches, and chasing their dreams. Strike Season is a poignant memoir about the lengths young people will go to achieve their dreams in the face of overwhelming odds. It is also the story of a boy desperate to make his father proud, a coach wrestling with his loyalties, and a young social studies teacher fighting for his union. At once thrilling and inspiring, Strike Season captures a moment in sports history when youth and courage collide, forever changing a group of young men and the game they loved. Praise & Reviews for Strike SeasonStrike Season soars. It's much more than a terrific football story; it's a one of a kind coming of age journey. Don't be surprised if you need to remind yourself that this is a true story. — James Andrew Miller, co-author of #1 NYT bestseller, Those Guys Have All the Fun: Inside the World of ESPNThis vivid, gripping story is about football, but it's also an unforgettable testament to adolescence, its dreams and intensely felt emotions, and what happens when the real world gets the last word. Set amidst some of the game's most iconographic elements—a community in thrall to its Friday nights; western Pennsylvania during the reign of the Steelers; the allure of Notre Dame's Golden Dome—Strike Season is a poignant and powerful account of coming of age, but having to do so on other people's terms. — Alexander Wolff, longtime Sports Illustrated senior writer and author of Big Games, Small WorldMichael Eck is a founder of the nonprofit Steer for Student Athletes, which provides mentorship support to high school student athletes from challenging circumstances. Proceeds from book sales will be donated to Steer. He was interim CEO of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Village and had a forty-year career on Wall Street. He holds an MBA from Northwestern University and a BS from the McIntire School of Commerce at the University of Virginia, where he played quarterback on the football team and was an Academic All American.", "item_img_path" : "https://covers2.booksamillion.com/covers/bam/9/79/889/565/9798895655825_b.jpg", "price_data" : { "retail_price" : "28.99", "online_price" : "26.09", "our_price" : "26.09", "club_price" : "26.09", "savings_pct" : "10", "savings_amt" : "2.90", "club_savings_pct" : "10", "club_savings_amt" : "2.90", "discount_pct" : "19", "store_price" : "" } }

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