Sean Glennon

The first signing with Patriots Hall of Fame linebacker Steve Nelson is officially confirmed.

Nellie and I will be signing copies Game Changers: The Greatest Plays in New England Patriots History at the Barnes & Noble Booksellers store in Warwick, Rhode Island on Saturday, October 2 from 1 to 3 p.m.

This is going to be a great opportunity for you to meet one of the all-time great Patriots.

Steve played 14 years for the Pats, during which time he went to three Pro Bowls. He was part of three of the best Patriots teams ever fielded, in 1976, 1974 and 1985. That ’85 squad, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary year, was the first Patriots team to make the Super Bowl.

Steve, who wrote a terrific foreword for Game Changers, is only doing two signings. So don’t miss this chance to meet him and pick up a signed copy — for yourself or that special Pats fan on your holiday list.

Store details and a link to directions are on the events page.

I’ll be appearing on 22 News, WWLP, in Springfield, Massachusetts on Monday, September 13.

I’ll do two segments, one at 5:50 a.m. and the other at 6:15 a.m. I’ll be talking about Game Changers: The Greatest Plays in New England Patriots History and the Patriots season opener.

I hope you’ll be able to tune in.

September 9 is the first day of the 2010 NFL season. That, I suppose, we all know.

What you might not realize is that the date also marks the 50th anniversary of the AFL’s inaugural regular season game. On September 9, 1960, the Boston Patriots hosted the Denver Broncos at Boston University Field.

The Pats were expected to beat the Broncos handily. They didn’t. And the biggest part of the difference was a spectacular punt return touchdown by Denver’s rookie running back/placekicker (and, as the result of an injury to halfback Al Carmichael, kick returner) Gene Mingo.

Here’s an excerpt from the chapter in Game Changers: The Greatest Plays in New England Patriots History in which I look at the game and Mingo’s back-breaking play.

“It sort of freaked me out that during my first game I was going to have to do something I had never prepared for,” Mingo remembers. “But in those days, football wasn’t so specialized. We had 33 guys on that team. If you wanted to keep your job, you did what your coach asked.”

Mingo powered the full 76 yards down the field and into the end zone, logging the first punt return touchdown in AFL history and posting the points that would decide the game.

Wanna know the rest? Buy the book. It’s worth it. I promise.

Just a quick heads up: I’ll be on the The Jim Polito Show on WTAG, 580 AM/94.9 FM in Worcester, Massachusetts, Thursday, September 9 at 8:05 a.m. talking about the book and the upcoming Pats season. The segment will re-air Friday, September 10 at 6:05 a.m. Tune in if you’re around. Or log on to the station’s web site. And, you know, if you have a second, stop by the event page on Facebook and let me know you’ll be listening.

I’ve also taped an interview with Monte on The River, 93.9 FM in Northampton, Massachusetts. That’ll run either on Thursday, September 9 or Friday, September 10. I’ll let you know exactly when as soon as I hear.

I’ve scheduled the first radio interview related to Game Changers: The Greatest Plays in New England Patriots History. I’ll be on the Morning Show with Brad & Bo on WHYN, 560 AM in Springfield, Massachusetts, Friday, September 3 at 7:05 a.m. talking about the book and the upcoming season. I’ve very excited to get things rolling. If you’re not in the area, you can listen through the WHYN web site.

I’ve got an events page up on the site now, which currently lists that interview and a signing in Walpole October 23. Keep checking back for more events, including those signings with Steve Nelson (and some Nellie media appearances).

Also, Amazon now has a cover image up. That seems like something.

The book is out. You can buy it. And read it. And, I hope, enjoy it. So, you know, get on with it.

It appears that Amazon is selling Game Changers: The Greatest Plays in New England Patriots History, though they still don’t have a cover image up. So if you’ve been waiting for that to kick in, well, apparently it has.

Still no word on signings with Nellie. You’ll know when I know. Meanwhile, I’m working on signings with just me. There again, I’ll let you know what’s up as soon as there’s something to report.

Went to my local Barnes & Noble this afternoon to pick up Pat Kirwan and David Seigerman’s Take Your Eye Off the Ball: How to Watch Football by Knowing Where to Look, which I can’t wait to read, and a copy of the latest Pro Football Weekly (getting ready for a fantasy draft on Thursday and I like their board a lot) and saw copies of Game Changers: The Greatest Plays in New England Patriots History on the shelf. It was my first actual sighting of the book in the wild. So, you know, it’s out there. Which is pretty damned exciting if you ask me.

As I wait for Game Changers: The Greatest Plays in New England Patriots History to hit stores, and for Triumph to finalize dates and locations for the two signings with Patriots legend Steve Nelson, I’m starting to plan some other activities for the fall. Those will include signings (yeah, just me without Nellie) and, you know, some other stuff TBD.

If you’re just wondering when signings are happening, please keep checking back (or make things easy on yourself by joining the Game Changers Facebook group). When you see an Events page show up on the navigation bar, it means there’s something to list.

I think I’m going to be in Foxborough on September 12, when the Pats host the Cincinnati Bengals. I’ll spend the hours before kickoff walking around the parking lots talking to fans (I can’t sell out there, so I’m not gonna be trying to sell anyone anything; I’ll just be chatting and telling folks about my book). So if you’re gonna be out there tailgating and you’ve got a regular spot and you want me to stop by and say hello, just drop me a line and let me know where. I’ll do my best to get over your way.

If you’ve got suggestions about where I should sign, leave a comment and let me know. I’ll try to work it out. (For what it’s worth, I’ve tended to sign at chain stores, because they’ve generally been more receptive to me than indies. But the indies that have had me have been great. So, you know, I’ve got no loyalties either way. If a store will have me in, I’ll get there.)

And, of course, if you’ve got an event that needs a storytelling football historian or you want me to come and tailgate with you, we can work that out, too.

With copies of Game Changers: The Greatest Plays in New England Patriots History scheduled to ship from Chicago tomorrow (which I hope means they’ll hit the shelves of your favorite bookstore very soon), I’ve been thinking not only about what’s up ahead for me but what’s ahead for the Patriots. It appears to be one of those seasons when there’s a ton of promise but also many questions to be answered. It’s also, according to the experts, supposed to be a tough season in the AFC East. Both of those things bring to mind 2003. And that’s got me thinking about the game in Miami in which the Pats took control of the division. Here’s video of the huge OT touchdown pass from Tom Brady to Troy Brown that won a hard-fought game.

“For a quarterback, having a receiver like Troy Brown is very calming, settling. You know this guy’s going to catch the ball when you throw it to him, he’s going to get open when he’s supposed to, he’s going to do what you need him to do.”
— Steve Grogan

It’s not really news at this point that Game Changers: The Greatest Plays in New England Patriots History is scheduled to ship from Chicago on Thursday. But a reminder isn’t gonna hurt you.

More along the lines of actual news, we (and by we I mean the folks at Triumph ) appear to be closing in on dates for a pair of signings with Patriots Hall of Fame member Steve Nelson. I’m still blown away by the very fact that Nellie agreed to write the foreword for this book. I’m gonna be incredibly psyched to get to go out and sign books with him.

Yeah, yeah, I know that no one who shows up at those events is gonna care one bit about getting my signature. I don’t care. I want to meet Nellie just like you do. Because, look, here’s a guy who was part of the great Patriots squads of 1976, 1978 and 1985. And consider this: It was largely defense and special teams that got the 1985 Pats to Super Bowl XX. And Nellie was no small factor on the D that season. He led the team in tackles during the regular season (149) and was second on the team in tackles in the playoffs (26). This despite the fat that he he dislocated his shoulder in the second quarter of the wild card round win over the Jets. Not only did he play though that injury, but he recorded seven solo tackles and a fumble recovery. That’s the definition of tough football. Then two weeks later, still playing hurt, Steve had a key forced fumble that helped the Pats beat the Dolphins in Miami to win the Lamar Hunt Trophy. Huge. (Keep in mind, those of you who weren’t around for it, that those were the days when the Patriots never, ever won in Miami. That was one of the most significant wins in team history. Not on the same level as the Super Bowl victories, of course, but close. I think it would fall fourth on my list of all-time greatest Patriots triumphs.)

Oh, and by the way, this year marks the 1985 squad’s 25th anniversary. What better time to meet Steve Nelson? That goes for you and me both. I’ll let you know when you’ll get the opportunity as soon as dates are confirmed.