I am a sucker for inspirational stories. And when you tell me that it is based on a true story and it involves sports - well, you had me at inspirational already. Growing up Hoosiers was one of those movies for me. I loved watching the small town Indiana basketball team rise to the championships. Maybe it is because I played a lot of sports, but really I think it was more about faith and possibilities.
David and I just finished watching When The Game Stands Tall which shares the inspiring and incredible journey of coach Bob Ladouceur and his high school football team, the De Le Salle Spartans. Incredibly they pulled off a 151 game winning streak. Yes, this movie talked about and showed us that amazing streak but it did much more than that too. I loved that coach Bob was focused more on putting forth your best effort every game than the actual win itself. Sure he wanted to win football games, what coach doesn't? But he was striving and training these boys for so much more than football - he was helping his players truly become men. There is success, there are obstacles, there is tragedy and through all of these life issues the players and the team are ultimately forced to examine their own values and what is truly important.
To Our Boys (C and F) - I am praying you two will grow up to be Godly men!
As a Christian it can be challenging at times to know when ministry and when family comes first. Sometimes those lines are blurred. One challenging aspect of the film is the tension in coach Bob's own family. He has spent so much time investing in his players and the football program that ultimately his own family has suffered. This can be seen in his marriage as well as his relationship with his son, one of his players. This comes to a head when coach Bob must step away from coaching for a period of time due to health issues. While I think that these issues were addressed well, I didn't feel like they were completely healed or wrapped up at the conclusion of the movie. In fact, I was hoping for a reconciliation scene of sorts. Even without that, I really enjoyed this movie and I did find it positive and inspirational. But personally, I would like to add it in :).
To learn more about this movie and/or purchase it from Family Christian go here and you can check out the companion devotional here as well. This companion contains 52 devotionals that are based on Scripture and each relate to an aspect of the game of football.
If you have seen this movie already let me know what you thought. And you can check out the trailer of the movie below - you're welcome!
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