During an association with the Washington State football program that started in 1977, Jim Walden established a foundation of competitive expectations that helped spur the success of contemporary Cougar teams. Waldens 1981 Cougars broke a 51-year bowl drought, and with victories in three of his last five Apple Cup games against Washington, Walden finally leveled the field with WSUs cross-state rivals. Waldens teams beat every opponent in the Pac-10 Conference at least once, squaring off against powerhouses USC, UCLA, and Washington despite a deficit in resources that he once described as having to fight battles every Saturday with a really short sword. He kidded and sparred with coaches like Don James, John Robinson, and Terry Donahue, while ticking off a few others with his outspokenness. He offered his opinions so frequently and frankly that his university president had The Walden Release printed and ready as a disclaimer for the press: The opinions of Coach Walden do not necessarily reflect the stance of the WSU administration.
In Tales from the Washington State Cougars Sideline, the stories cover players and coaches alike, including Jack The Throwin Samoan Thompson, the colorful Lone Star Dietz, Bill Doba, and many more. Walden reveals the effective strategies and the flubs and tells what really happened on the field and in the locker rooms. He also shares the ways he was able to coax prospects into coming to remote Pullman and what he was really screaming at officials all those times. Walden tells his stories the way he coachedall out and nothing held back, with wit and humor.
Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Sports Publishing imprint, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in sportsbooks about baseball, pro football, college football, pro and college basketball, hockey, or soccer, we have a book about your sport or your team.
Whether you are a New York Yankees fan or hail from Red Sox nation; whether you are a die-hard Green Bay Packers or Dallas Cowboys fan; whether you root for the Kentucky Wildcats, Louisville Cardinals, UCLA Bruins, or Kansas Jayhawks; whether you route for the Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, or Los Angeles Kings; we have a book for you. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to publishing books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked by other publishers and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.
