When Earl "Curly" Lambeau was a young boy growing up in Green Bay in the early 1900s, he and his friends didn't have money for a football. Instead, they kicked around a salt sack filled with sand, leaves, and pebbles. That humble beginning produced a single-minded drive for the figure whose name now graces the Green Bay Packers' stadium.

This title in the Badger Biographies series charts the course of Curly Lambeau's career as a flamboyant player and coach, which paralleled the rise of professional football in this country. Lambeau revolutionized the way football is played by legitimizing passing in a game that had previously centered on running. His dedication to popularizing football in Green Bay and in the state helped build the Packer organization into the institution it has become. Yet, he was not without flaws, and this biography presents a full picture of a man whose ambitions complicated his legacy.

Stuart Stotts is a songwriter, storyteller, and author. He performs throughout the Midwest, and sometimes farther. He is a frequent presenter at conferences and workshops for teachers, parents, and librarians. Stuart is also the author of The Bookcase Ghost: A Collection of Wisconsin Ghost Stories and Books in a Box: Lutie Stearns and the Traveling Libraries of Wisconsin. He lives with his wife, Heather, and their family in DeForest, Wisconsin.