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Foreword Michael Lewis v
Acknowledgements ix
Growing Up
The Early Years 3
Byu 20
Law School 27
Finding My Way
Why Not Me? 43
Iowa Wesleyan 56
Valdosta 68
Kentucky 78
Boomer Sooner 89
Running the Show
Building the Team 107
Setting the Tone 138
Life at Tech 157
Sticking to Your Guns 177
The Power Play 190
Gone Fishin' 218
Epilogue 232
Appendix: Game Week 243
Afterword Peter Berg 258
Notes 261
Anonymous
Posted July 15, 2011
This is the story of Leach's firing, but that occurs later in the book. It is an interesting travel thru the mind of an intelligent, though admittedly quirky football coach whose thinking is quite different from most coaches. His firing was a mark of shames on my alma mater and typical, I am afraid, of a lot of political intrigues that are happening now.
5 out of 6 people found this review helpful.
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Posted July 14, 2011
Enjoyed every word! There is some really evil stuff going on with the higher ups in west texas.
4 out of 5 people found this review helpful.
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Posted December 28, 2011
As a coach and Tech graduate I was very interested in Swing Your Sword. I wanted to know about the shady dealings that forced Leach's departure, but also wanted to get some insight into his coaching philosophy and thought process. I was very pleased with how much Leach opened up in this book about his life, experiences, and football. I really enjoyed all the quotes embedded throughout the book from other coaches, players and friends. Reading this book makes me, as a coach, want to sit with Leach or follow him for a week and get as much knowledge from him as possible. Great read! I look forward to following his career and watching the success he will soon have at Washington State.
3 out of 4 people found this review helpful.
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Posted October 17, 2011
This is a great book about the lies that were being told by texas tech and the james family about this great coach. I loved this book very much, it was filled with 100% more facts than texas tech and espn were telling the world. It is worth reading, all the facts come in print. Overall it is a great bok, and easy to read, you will love it.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted August 2, 2011
Everyone who enjoys football will enjoy this book. If you are involved with coaching football, from the youngest little league to pro, there is a lot to learn from this book.
A very enjoyable read. Like sitting across the breakfast table listening to Mike Leach as you discuss football and life with him.
He is a very genuine, likable person with an amazing mind.
The book is about working with and motivating people first of all. The book also documents the truth about a situation gone terrible wrong in Texas that has removed this amazing coach from his work and profession. Shame on you Texas Tech, ESPN and Spaeth Communication.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted March 31, 2013
This extremely insightful book not only discussing football but also discussing life and thought process makes Mike Leach not only a great coach, but a great role model and philosopher. Leach, through his quirkiness and charisma, takes you through his very entertaining life story and teaches you life lessons along the way. A must-read for any coach, leader, or just an everyday person. I highly recommend it.
buddy0
Posted January 11, 2013
Good ... not great. I really enjoyed it from a HS football coaches perspective. He is a very interesting man and has great innovative ideas.
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Posted March 12, 2012
Awesome book! I love the way this man thinks; he is very even-tempered and always in control of his thouggts and actions. Great for all fans of tge game of football, but more for those that enjoy watching and learning from people.
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Posted March 12, 2012
The title of this autobiography is Swing Your Sword by Mike Leach. In this autobiography Leach talks about his life and how he got into his career. Leach is a football coach and he takes us through his journey in this autobiography.
Leach wrote this autobiography to share his story. I also believe he wrote this autobiography in an attempt to inspire his readers. This is a first person point of view book in which Leach is writing about his life and his occupation. This is in informally written book that shares information on Leach’s past. I read this book because I am interested in following Leach’s footsteps and becoming a football coach. After reading this book my interest in the field has grown. I think Leach did a great job in writing this book and I really enjoyed it. I would recommend you read this book if you are interested in coaching or if you just want to be entertained and inspired.
I thought this book was very interesting. Leach has had an up and down career and he shares that in his book. There are a lot of misconceptions about Leach and I think he wanted to write this autobiography to clear up a lot of them. His intended audience is all those who want to hear Leach’s side of the story and to see how he thinks.
In this Autobiography Leach takes us through his life, his rise to stardom, and a controversial event in his past. Leach does a nice job taking us through his life one step at a time. I recommend this book to anyone out there that is interested. This is a great book and something I really enjoyed reading.
Anonymous
Posted February 6, 2012
Very interesting read....Mike Leach is an incredible person and coach.
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Posted December 28, 2011
My respect for Leach has only grown after reading this book. A great coach at my former school, he writes about so much more of who he is than how he was portrayed by Tech's administration. It reads as if he's talking to you, and I'd recommend it to anyone who's ever loved the man or the game.
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Posted September 14, 2011
A football genius!
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.andujar47
Posted August 29, 2011
A very enjoyable and entertaining read. Leach is eccentric but his journey through the coaching ranks and his philosophies, both in football and life make this book a must for true football fans.
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Posted August 18, 2011
I am both a Tech and Coach Leach fan. He has. a great perspective and I regret he was fired. If you are a football fan you can enjoy a read about his techniques which have produced explosive offensive stats.
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Posted August 8, 2011
Leach pretty much covers all the bases.From growing up in Wyoming,attending BYU then Pepperdine Law to all his coaching stops,leading up to his dismissal at Texas Tech.He doesn't come at you with "coach speak",in fact he's careful not to be cliche and doesn't apologize for it.What a relief.His methods aren't the norm,but they work and its easy to understand why.
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Posted December 19, 2011
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Posted August 30, 2011
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Anonymous
Posted December 21, 2011
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Anonymous
Posted January 7, 2012
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Anonymous
Posted August 18, 2011
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