My Part In a New Book About Maryland Basketball

There's been a lot going on with The CourtMaster in recent weeks, it just hasn't shown up on this blog.

One thing I do want time to let you know about is the piece I wrote that is included in an upcoming book. The title is "Hoop Tales: Maryland Terrapins Men's Basketball" and is co-authored by Johnny Holliday and Steve Moore.

Anyone remotely acquainted with University of Maryland sports recognizes Holliday as the long time (since 1979) radio play-by-play voice of both Terps' basketball and football. Moore also co-wrote Johnny's autobiography "From Rock to Jock" which chrnoicles Holliday's radio career as he became first a famous top-40 radio disk jockey then moved into sports full time. You can find my review of this book in the September 2002 archives of this blog.

A short time ago, Steve Moore approached me and asked me to contribute a piece to their new project, and I was happy to do so. I wrote a short piece about the trials and tribulations of being a Maryland fan going back to the early days of the Lefty Driesell era and how sweet the payoff was on the night the Terps won the national championship on April 1, 2002. I also tell how I shared these experiences with my best friend Robin and my late wife Bette, and how being at the sports bar with them on the championship night made a great experience perfect. There will also be contributions from other writers included in this book along with stories from Johnny himself.

This book is part of a series of Hoop Tales and Stadium Stories published by The Globe Pequot Press. I have 15 of them in my personal library and found all of the ones I've finished so far to be an enjoyable, quick read.

Hoop Tales: Maryland Terrapins Men's Basketball is due to be released on October 1, 2006. You can preorder it now through Amazon.com for only $9.20 + shipping. Such a deal!