Blue-Eyed Soul Brother

William C. Kashatus is a historian, educator, and the author of more than twenty books, including Lefty and Tim: How Steve Carlton and Tim McCarver Became Baseball’s Best Battery (Nebraska, 2022), Macho Row: The 1993 Phillies and Baseball’s Unwritten Code (Nebraska, 2017), and Jackie and Campy: The Untold Story of Their Rocky Relationship and the Breaking of Baseball’s Color Line (Nebraska, 2014). Ray Didinger is a sportswriter, sports commentator, radio personality, and the author of several books. He is also a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame on the Writers’ Honor Roll for his sportswriting career, which spanned more than a quarter of a century.

• List of IllustrationsForeword by Ray DidingerAcknowledgmentsIntroduction1. Palestine2. Friday Night Lights3. Blue-Eyed Soul Brother4. Longhorns5. Reality Check6. Penthouse to Shithouse7. Billy Bo Bitch8. Bamboozled9. Teacher-Coach10. Faith, Hope, and LoveAppendix A: Bill Bradley’s NFL Career Statistics, 1969–77Appendix B: Bill Bradley’s College Career Statistics, 1966–68NotesSelected BibliographyIndex

“William Kashatus captures the rise and fall and rise of Super Bill Bradley. His access to Bradley pays off big time. The book brims with inside information and sharp anecdotes. All are told in the context of the times with special attention to civil rights, Vietnam, high-stakes amateurism, the rising counterculture, substance abuse, the relentless pressure placed on young men to whip each other at a child’s game, and, most importantly, to Bradley’s journey from player to husband and father. It’s a hell of a good read.”-Bobby Hawthorne, author of Longhorn Football: An Illustrated History “Blue-Eyed Soul Brother is the inspirational story of Bill Bradley, my friend and teammate on the Philadelphia Eagles between 1971 and 1976. Although those were difficult years because of all the losing, Billy was a team leader who made the rest of us accountable on the playing field and kept us loose and laughing off of it. With this book, others will learn how fiercely competitive Bradley was as a player and how special he is as a person.”-Harold Carmichael, Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver, 1971–83, and Pro Football Hall of Famer, Class of 2020 “William Kashatus captures the essence of the greatest athlete I have ever seen. Super Bill Bradley was not only one of the NFL’s best free safeties but punted, returned, and held for our kickers. He was the ultimate ‘free spirit’ off the field but the fiercest on the gridiron. . . . I treasured the years we played together in Philadelphia and am grateful for his lifelong friendship.”-John Bunting, Philadelphia Eagles linebacker, 1972–82