Gridiron Gauntlet is a captivating reprise of lived history, an engaging, highly informative sojourn through the post-World War II reintegration of professional football as experienced and recalled by the sport's "second wave" of black players, the men whose sometimes ignored, mostly forgotten contributions and sacrifices were critical to the evolution of the game we see today.

– Harry Edwards, professor emeritus, University of California, Berkeley

...[H]umorous, disturbing, angry, sad, and uplifting. An involving and essential read for anyone interested in football.

– Library Journal

Vivid and fresh, this is a terrific addition to the secret history of sports we all need to know if we want to understand today's players and games.

– Robert Lipsyte, American sports journalist, ESPN Ombudsman, and author of An Accidental Sportswriter

An excellent and worthy contribution to sports history shelves, Gridiron Gauntlet is highly recommended.

– Midwest Book Review

Gridiron Gauntlet is a worthy addition to the scholarship on race in American sport. Because every word comes from the participants, the work, while serious, has the informality of a living room conversation with an accomplished and gregarious family member.

– Bay State Banner

…[A] great addition to any sports lover’s bookshelf and a valuable contribution to the civil rights history of pro football.

– Jane LaTour, Public Employee Press

Through firsthand accounts of the men who shaped their times, Gridiron Gauntlet provides fresh insight into an important era of sports history. An era that despite being too often overlooked, proved crucial to the making of the modern NFL.

– Intelligencer Journal/Lancaster New Era

...a book anyone who truly claims to be a fan of the early NFL needs to read.... Trust me, you won’t want to put it down.

– Baltimore Ravens blog at Footballdiaries.com

Anyone interested in history and sports should read this book. While diversity is a common sight on fields nowadays, it’s important to know and understand how that came to be.

– Thebookjournal.Com

...Piascik presents a living history, taking an engaging, informative sojourn through a critical, sometimes-forgotten, and often-ignored part of the evolution of today's NFL. Well written and thoroughly researched, this book will serve anyone interested in sports studies, sports history, and sociology. Recommended.

– Choice Reviews

Thanks to Gridiron Gauntlet, the stories of these 12 individuals have been preserved as a reminder that things were not always as they are today. There was racism, exclusion and prejudice in the 40's and 50's, but these men paved the way for future generations of football players, and they should not be forgotten.

– WorldofFootball.com