cover image The Color Orange: A Super Bowl Season with the Denver Broncos

The Color Orange: A Super Bowl Season with the Denver Broncos

Russell Martin. Henry Holt & Company, $0 (302pp) ISBN 978-0-8050-0562-2

1986 was a frustrating year for Denver's pro football team: after a 71 start, the regular season ended at 115; and, after winning the AFC championship, the Broncos were crushed by the Giants in the Super Bowl. Martin (Cowboy, Matters Gray and White recreates that odyssey in a smoothly written volume that tells as much about Denver, Colo., and Coloradans as about the team. There are informative insights into the blue-collar nature of the fans, the city and state politicians, the Coors beer company and its political bent, the media wars with reporters and telecasters trying to squeeze every line they can out of the football season and, above all, the poignant picture of what a winning team can mean to a small city. Photos. (September 11)