UCLA Football Staff Pick Their Favorite Sports Movies
Sports Month wouldn’t be complete without hearing from real-life athletes and coaches, so we asked some members of the UCLA Football program staff to share their favorite sports movie and why they love it.
Josh Irvin
Football Recruiting Analyst
Mystery, Alaska
Small-town hero underdogs face off against the big, bad NY Rangers. It has everything from playing for something bigger than yourself to finding victory and accomplishment in the face of a heartbreaking loss. Sprinkle in hilarious hijinks and Russell Crowe and you have the greatest sports movie of all time!
Sam Lazarus
Football Director of New Media
Friday Night Lights
A classic sports movie that connects with viewers through its emotional realism. The movie’s presentation of the pressures put on high school football players in small-town USA, as well as the impact these players have on their community, makes it a powerful experience for any viewer.
Jordan Bland
Football Recruiting Analyst
Coach Carter
The only thing we have to fear is fear itself. What’s better than Samuel L. Jackson MF-ing kids to victory?
Aaron Brin
Football Recruiting Assistant
Miracle
What else is there to say… America!! We sent a bunch of college hockey players against the most dominant country and against all odds we prevailed. The scene where they are skating as punishment and the players finally stop listing their colleges as their team and say they play for Team USA is iconic.
Jake Stern
Football Director of Recruiting Operations
Varsity Blues
It’s the best all-around slice of life with the best part of football: how the high school team fits into a whole town.
Tony Caljean
Special Teams Coordinator, Linebackers Coach
Friday Night Lights
It came out while I was in high school and I saw it with a bunch of my teammates. It’s just the essence of what makes football and all sports great: a bunch of different people with different personalities coming together for a common goal, representing your hometown, the pride the community takes in what you do, the highs of winning and sobering lows of losing. I think it’s pretty realistic.
Tyler Markowitz
Assistant Director of Football Operations
Remember the Titans & The Sandlot
Remember the Titans because it just goes to show you how two months of high-level football can eliminate an entire town’s racism. The Sandlot because Squints showed persistence in snagging the smokeshow of a lifeguard, Wendy Peffercorn.
Torie Brown
Football Recruiting Assistant
Moneyball
Because it’s a true story and combines math and sports. Tugs on the heart strings a little too.