So You Think You Know Football? brings simplicity to the complexity of the NFL rulebook
Ben Austro provides a detailed look at the NFL rules by using examples of calls from actual games. Using an entertaining and informative approach, Austro demystifies the 200+ page NFL rulebook and explains nuanced interpretations with ease. The reader is challenged to make the correct call with quiz questions throughout the book that are geared for both casual and hardcore football fans. So You Think You Know Football? is now on store shelves and is available from online retailers such as Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
Austro is the founder and editor of the popular officiating website Football Zebras, which is often cited by the media for its expert analysis. Referee magazine listed it as one of a handful of football officiating websites “worth checking out.” Austro’s reporting was the subject of a half-hour discussion on ESPN’s prestigious investigative program Outside the Lines and an article in The New York Times. He has also been interviewed on CNN’s Piers Morgan Tonight, NPR’s All Things Considered, Sirus/XM’s Mad Dog Radio, and several sports-talk radio programs (full list with audio and video links).
The book is published by Taylor Trade Publishing, an imprint of Rowman & Littlefield. Austro is represented by Regina Ryan.
Media availability
Ben Austro is located in northern New Jersey and has flexible media availability.
Feel free to have a general discussion of NFL officiating and the rules as part of the interview. The Football Zebras website is a unique property in the sports media landscape with an interesting backstory on how it was founded.
We will furnish you with a PDF copy of the book, and we can overnight a hard copy at your request. A high-res headshot is available for phone or print interviews, if needed, but the author can get to a studio in Manhattan or Metro New Jersey for a remote.
Please contact via e-mail at to make arrangements.
What others are saying about So You Think You Know Football?
Ben Austro is so deft and smart about every football rule that he could be working at the right hand of Dean Blandino in the NFL officiating department. But you’re lucky he isn’t, because now he has time to enrich your football experience with this book.
— Peter King, The MMQB editor-in-chief; NBC NFL analyst
A readable, informative, and entertaining casebook of NFL rules that appeals to the casual and expert fan. Austro explains nuanced examples with an authority typically unseen from NFL media.
— Kevin Seifert, ESPN.com
It’s been fascinating to follow Ben Austro’s progression from interested fan to qualified commentator to bona fide expert on NFL rules and officiating. So You Think You Know Football? is must-reading for NFL fans who want to know how the game really works. The book takes you from the start of the game to the finish and highlights interesting rule quirks with real-life examples taken from recent NFL games.
— John Murphy, Buffalo Bills play-by-play announcer
Ben Austro has done an outstanding job of research and analysis of the rules and nuances of the game of football as played and officiated in the National Football League. For every fan that has ever said ‘I could’ve made that call’ to themselves or their football buddies—here’s your chance. Austro leaves no stone unturned as he fully explains the when, what, and how behind various rules and interpretations which come into play each and every week during an NFL game. I hope you enjoy reading this book as much as I have.
— Larry Upson, former NFL officiating supervisor and on-field official;
former vice president of officiating for UFL
I have thoroughly enjoyed reading So You Think You Know Football?. In this book, Ben Austro does a great job explaining rules to the NFL fan in a manner that is easy to understand. Although you may not always agree with his explanations—or those of the official making the call on the field—you will understand a lot more than you ever had before if you read this book. Ben has simplified each rule and has done a fantastic job of giving a historical background as to the specific plays or situations that helped put these rules in place. [Excerpt from the foreword of the book.]
— Jim Daopoulos, former NFL officiating supervisor and on-field official; NFL rules analyst for ESPN