Undertaker's Son : Life Lessons from a Coach

by Richard Digger Phelps, with Jack Colwell

• ISBN13: 9781599212098
• ISBN10: 1599212099
• Format: Trade Book
• Copyright: 2007-09-01
• Publisher: Lyons Press

Summary

Head basketball coach of Notre Dame at age 29, a position he held for more than two decades with a 100 percent graduation rate, an attention-getting figure in President George H. W. Bush's anti-drug program, part-time ambassador, a nationally adored ESPN commentator, and a possible Presidential candidate, Richard "Digger" Phelps has done it all. Undertaker's Son is an eminently readable, inspirational, account of how he rose from an unmotivated student in small-town Beacon, New York, to a nationally known figure who attracts attention wherever he goes. One lesson: Do it today, for tomorrow might not come-a hard lesson he learned while apprenticing at his father's funeral home. In Undertaker's Son, the irrepressible Phelps gives advice that really matters, whether it's how to get getting ahead in business, make the right decision, or plan for the future. Here also is Phelps's plan for a better America in these contentious times. Brutally honest, inspirational and often humorous, Phelps's message will appeal to anyone seeking an edge in business or life.This is the perfect gift for anyone who loves a turnaround story.

Author Biography

Richard “Digger” Phelps is the winningest men’s basketball coach in Notre Dame’s storied athletic history. He is now a basketball analyst for ESPN. As the White House director of Operation Weed and Seed, Digger leads a national effort to weed out violence and seed positive programs in the worst of neighborhoods, in addition to promoting mentoring and after-school programs.

 

Jack Colwell is a former longtime political columnist for the South Bend (Indiana) Tribune.

Table of Contents

The Coach's Game Plan for Life	p. viii
Stranger in Our House	p. 1
Dad's Undertaking	p. 5
Wizard Kicks ND: We Kick His Ass	p. 13
"Jesus, Mary, and Joseph!": That's My Mom	p. 21
You Can Go Home Again	p. 29
Hail, Caesar	p. 35
The Judge Ruled	p. 45
My Most Important Game	p. 51
Dreaming of Notre Dame	p. 57
A Dream Comes True	p. 67
Upsetting Experiences	p. 75
Recruiting Promises	p. 83
Always Have a Backup	p. 89
Weeding and Seeding	p. 97
Washington Sightseeing: Where Tourists Fear to Tread	p. 105
Dan Quayle's Hot Potato(e)	p. 113
Racing with Murphy Brown	p. 121
Foreign Policy: Is the President Naked Underneath?	p. 131
Voting in the Killing Fields	p. 139
A Russian I Couldn't Kill	p. 149
Bob Knight and Al McGuire: On Court and Off	p. 155
Digger as Artist and Van Gogh Freak	p. 165
One for the Gipper	p. 171
Relax: Stress Is Stressful	p. 179
Hesburgh Asks: "What Have You Really Been Doing?"	p. 187
Giving Volume to Small Voices	p. 195
High Schools: Warehousing, Not Educating	p. 203
The 2-Foot Yardstick	p. 211
Shut Up and Sit Down on the Bench	p. 221
The "Real" Dickie V	p. 227
Digger for President: What If He Ran?	p. 233
Four Good Friends, Soon to Be Three	p. 241
No Decade to Waste: Do It Yesterday	p. 253
About the Authors	p. 259
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