#15 Necessary Roughness (1991) Short movie description: Due to NCAA sanctions, the Texas State University Fightin' Armadillos must form a football team from their actual student body, with no scholarships to help, to play their football schedule.
Take a look at the best Football movies of all time, as judged by a Gazette panel.All photos and movie descriptions from IMDB.comFor more Gazette lists, check out our lists page.
#15 Necessary Roughness (1991) Short movie description: Due to NCAA sanctions, the Texas State University Fightin’ Armadillos must form a football team from their actual student body, with no scholarships to help, to play their football schedule.#1 Rudy (1993) Short movie description: Rudy has always been told that he was too small to play college football. But he is determined to overcome the odds and fulfill his dream of playing for Notre Dame.#3 Brian’s Song (1971) Short movie description: Based on the real-life relationship between teammates Brian Piccolo and Gale Sayers and the bond established when Piccolo discovers that he is dying.#2 Remember the Titans (2000) Short movie description: The true story of a newly appointed African-American coach and his high school team on their first season as a racially integrated unit.#4 The Longest Yard (1974) Short movie description: A sadistic warden asks a former pro quarterback, now serving time in his prison, to put together a team of inmates to take on (and get pummeled by) the guards.#7 Friday Night Lights (2004) Short movie description: Based on H.G. Bissinger’s book, which profiled the economically depressed town of Odessa, Texas and their heroic high school football team, The Permian High Panthers.#14 The Blind Side (2009) Short movie description: The story of Michael Oher, a homeless and traumatized boy who became an All-American football player and first-round NFL draft pick with the help of a caring woman and her family.#9 Jerry Maguire (1996) Short movie description: When a sports agent has a moral epiphany and is fired for expressing it, he decides to put his new philosophy to the test as an independent with the only athlete who stays with him.#10 Knute Rockne All American (1940) Short movie description: The story of legendary Notre Dame football player and coach Knute Rockne.#5 The Waterboy (1998) Short movie description: A waterboy for a college football team discovers he has a unique tackling ability when he “visualizes and attacks” and becomes a member of the team.#11 When the Game Stands Tall (2014) Short movie description: The journey of legendary football coach Bob Ladouceur, who took the De La Salle High School Spartans from obscurity to a 151-game winning streak that shattered all records for any American sport.#6 North Dallas Forty (1979) Short movie description: A semi-fictional account of life as a professional football (American-style) player. Loosely based on the Dallas Cowboys team of the early 1970s. (www.pastposters.com)#13 Paper Lion (1968) Short movie description: The true story of sportswriter George Plimpton posing as a rookie quarterback for the Detroit Lions for a “Sports Illustrated” article.#8 Invincible (2006) Short movie description: Based on the story of Vince Papale, a 30-year-old bartender from South Philadelphia who overcame long odds to play for the NFL’s Philadelphia Eagles in 1976.#12 Varsity Blues (1999) Short movie description: A back-up quarterback is chosen to lead a Texas football team to victory after the star quarterback is injured.
