Grantland Rice - One of the Great Rural Sports Writers

I've always like the work of Grantland Rice in that his writings were "heroic" and "inspirational" as reported in a wikepedia posting here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grantland_Rice

But I always thought he was an urban sports writer. What is interesting to me is that Rice has rural roots. He was born and raised in (at the time) rural Tennessee, specifically Murfreesboro; a city in and the county seat of Rutherford County, Tennessee, United States. "Although Murfreesboro is sometimes considered a suburb or exurb of Nashville, Tennessee, it is far enough away about 35 miles to maintain a separate identity from its larger neighbor".

What influence did the rural setting have upon Grantland Rice when a young boy? We can only imagine his dreams and aspirations. And perhaps journalism offered him a "way out." But people from rural areas really don't want out; we want to escape poverty and bring "the country to the city": i.e. our values, work ethic, and sense of balance to the urban environment.