Third Down and a War to Go

Terry Frei

Aug 2012 · Wisconsin Historical Society

About this ebook

On December 11, 1941, All-American football player Dave Schreiner wrote to his parents, "I'm not going to sit here snug as a bug, playing football, when others are giving their lives for their country. ... If everyone tried to stay out of it, what a fine country we'd have!" Schreiner didn't stay out of it. Neither did his Wisconsin Badger teammates, including friend and co-captain Mark "Had" Hoskins and standouts "Crazylegs" Hirsch and Pat Harder. After that legendary 1942 season, the Badgers scattered to serve, fight, and even die around the world.

This fully revised edition of the popular hardcover includes follow-up research and updates about many of the '42 Badgers, plus a new foreword by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author David Maraniss. Readers and reviewers agree: Terry Frei's heart-wrenching story of Schreiner and his band of brothers is much more than one team's tale. It's an All-American story.

Ratings and reviews

I'm admittedly biased as a Wisconsin alum, but this book is another lesson in the service and sacrifice the World War II generation gave. As interesting as the accounts of the football games were, the book really picks up steam when describing the men's heroics during the war.

About the author

Terry Frei, an award-winning journalist, writes for ESPN.com. He is the author of the acclaimed Horns, Hogs, and Nixon Coming: Texas vs. Arkansas in Dixie's Last Stand. He lives in Denver.