Mike Leach's New Book Looks to Challenge College Football's Conventional Wisdom

KEY WEST, Fla., Sept. 27, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- "What do you get when you combine an astrophysicist, a world champion backgammon player, some respected economists and a few other brilliant minds?" asks New York Jets head coach Rex Ryan about friend and former Texas Tech head football coach Mike Leach.

Ryan is referring, in this case, to Leach's latest literary undertaking, "Sports for Dorks: College Football" (ISBN 978-0615484976), in which Leach once again takes aim at college football's conventional wisdom.

Leach, along with co-editor Ferhat Guven, came up with the idea of "Sports for Dorks" during  a "typical" telephone call in which they discussed Henry VIII, the Ottoman Empire, US fiscal policy, Sub Saharan Africa real estate, and of course college football.  

The two come from different walks of life; Leach is the still wildly popular former head football coach of the Texas Tech Red Raiders and author of New York Times bestselling autobiography Swing Your Sword:  Leading the Charge in Football and in Life, while Guven, based in London, is an executive in a global real estate investment firm and avid college football fan.

Leach views the world of college football as a crucible of innovation, yet despite the enormous media coverage enjoyed by the sport, he notes that little if any of that side of the game is exposed to the public. Guven, out of his own interest, follows a number of talented academics, writers and bloggers who cover many of the sport's more unique aspects, but do so in what he describes as relative obscurity.

The two wondered if there was an audience that wanted to better understand the game in a manner that went beyond what was being offered by conventional media.

Leach and Guven set out to collect essays and articles from a wide range of thinkers who were examining the game in an unusual way. "We were focused on identifying well-formulated ideas which challenge a sport dominated by conventional wisdom," said Guven. "The book's contributors include coaches, journalists, bloggers, academics, economists and yes, even an astrophysicist."

Leach and Guven examine college football, both on and off the field, through disciplines such as economics, psychology, statistics and sociology. Their book provides readers with unique insights into Leach's coaching influences and philosophies, offers a formula that would make the BCS ranking process more rational, and examines what they describe as the meteoric rise of American football in Great Britain.

"We are trying to bring innovative content to readers," Guven says. "We want to provide a unique perspective to readers who are looking for more than just box scores, cliches and lukewarm paeans to their favorite teams' greatness. We hope our readers will be informed and entertained. There is plenty of opportunity for both throughout the book which come from a variety of perspectives."

"Sports for Dorks: College Football" is available for sale online at Amazon.com and other channels.

About the Editors

Mike Leach is the former all-time winning football coach at Texas Tech and author of the bestselling autobiography, Swing Your Sword:  Leading the Charge in Football and Life. Leach is a graduate of BYU and Pepperdine University School of Law. Ferhat Guven is a real estate investment professional who graduated from Texas Tech University before earning his graduate business degree from the London Business School.  For more information, see www.sportsfordorks.com.

SOURCE Mike Leach and Ferhat Guven