16 Best Movies About High School Football That You Should Reading Update 04/2024

Movies About High School Football

The NFL season has come to an end, and the NBA All-Star break is just around the corner.

Go90’s new show QB1: Beyond the Lights may be accessed during a lull in professional activity.

To prepare for their upcoming collegiate football careers, three of the nation’s top high school quarterbacks are followed throughout their senior year in this 10-part docuseries. “Friday Night Lights” producer Peter Berg serves as executive producer. Aside from Coach Taylor and the Dillon Panthers (based on the 2004 film and a non-fiction book), there are few shows and films about high school football as beloved as QB1.

In no particular order, here are the finest sixteen.

1. Varsity Blues

Varsity Blues

It’s refreshing to see James Van Der Beek in something other than peak Dawson’s Creek mania for his role as a complacent backup quarterback thrust into the spotlight after his star counterpart is wounded. There is now a direct disagreement between Jonathan “Mox” Moxom (known as Dawson Leery) and his instructor (Jon Voight) (fellow WB alum, Amy Smart). You owe it to young Paul Walker, one of a string of heartthrob- and hottie-filled coming-of-age flicks from the late ’90s and early ’00s, to check out Varsity Blues.

2. Lucas

Lucas is a coming-of-age football movie in the vein of the ’80s Breakfast Club. Charlie Sheen was formerly a football-playing bully named Cappie who had grabbed the attention of Lucas’ dream girl, Maggie, before going all “tiger blood” on us. In an attempt to win him over, she takes up the role of a cheerleader. When it comes to squirmy brainiac Lucas, he doesn’t do much. Of course, he joins the football squad! As you can expect, things don’t go as planned, but the story does end on a high note. It’s also Winona Ryder’s feature film debut, and she’s presently slaying on Stranger Things.

3. School Ties

School Ties

If you’re looking for a contemporary film about anti-Semitism and a culture of intolerance at a high-end prep school, School Ties is it. As a working-class Jewish quarterback from Scranton, Pennsylvania, David Greene (Brendan Fraser) is accepted into a New England prep school for his senior year. Despite the school’s request, even his teammates turn against him as he reveals his religious beliefs. David and his adversary, played by a baby-faced Matt Damon, get embroiled in a cheating scandal, and this bias comes to a head.

4. Remember the Titans

We’re not going to be silly around here. You’ve seen the trailers, and you already know what this film is about. They have Denzel and a group of scrubs, including Ryan Gosling and Hayden Panettierre. When Denzel said things like “You fumble the football, and I’ll break my foot off in your John Brown hind bits, and then you’ll run a mile,” we were floored.

But most importantly, the film manages to convey its positive message without becoming cheesy, which appears to be the most difficult thing for most sports movies to achieve (and this is a Disney movie at that).

5. The Blind Side

This picture has received an Oscar, a Golden Globe, and a SAG Award for Sandra Bullock’s performance, so it must be good, right?

When Leigh Anne Tuohy (Bullock) and her husband take in homeless black teenager Michael Oher, he becomes an inspiration to the Tuohys. He goes on to become an All-American football player and a first-round NFL Draft pick as a result of this.

6. Friday Light Nights (Film)

Friday Light Nights (Film)

On the whole, Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, a Dream was one of the best pieces of journalism in recent memory. Permian High School Panthers from Odessa, Texas, made a run at the state championship in 1990, according to H.G. Bissinger’s book of the same name published in 1990. To see how much of an impact their success would have on an economically poor community, Billy Bob Thornton starred in a 2004 film about the team. It also made Boobie Miles a household name.

7. Gridiron Gang

This was The Rock’s first starring role in a dramatic film. Dwayne Johnson plays Sean Porter, a counselor at a juvenile correctional center, in this film based on a true event. A football team is a way for him to offer the youngsters another shot, impose some discipline, and boost their self-esteem. Their opponents are high school coaches who don’t want their students playing criminals, as well as the pressures of life on the streets. Using football as a kind of therapy has proven to be effective for many of the youngsters.

8. Facing the Giants

Grant Taylor has never guided the Shiloh Eagles to a successful season in six years as coach. It’s hard for him, both personally and professionally. He cries out to God for help, and pushes his teammates to do the same. On and off the field, as you might expect, they all rise to the occasion. Facing the Giants is, of course, about God. Football, too.

9. Friday Night Lights (TV show)

Friday Night Lights (TV show)

It’s a similar premise to the movie, except that the action takes place in a fictional town called Dillon, Texas.

Kyle Chandler played Eric Taylor, while Connie Britton portrayed his wife Tami, his rock and support system. Small-town issues, such as racism and drug usage, were highlighted in the drama, which had low ratings but received high praise from critics.

10. When the Game Stands Tall

The film adaptation of a book based on a true story seems to be a common subject here.

It’s a story of a renowned coach who led the De La Salle High School Spartans to a record-breaking winning streak.

When the streak is ended by tragedy, they bounce back by prioritizing collaboration over individual brilliance.

11. Radio

When James “Radio” Kennedy was adopted as a team mascot and cheerleader for Anderson High School’s football team in South Carolina, Sports Illustrated reported on it. Harold Jones (Cuba Gooding Jr.) and Radio (Cuba Gooding Jr.) forge a close friendship during Radio’s first season on the club (Ed Harris). Even though radio received mixed reviews, it nevertheless managed to draw a following and garner some prominence during this time period.

12. Undefeated

Undefeated

The Manassas Tigers football team in Memphis’ inner city is the subject of the Oscar-winning documentary Undefeated, which follows three of the squad’s players. They’re hoping for a winning season after a long period of poor results, but they’re also dealing with a variety of personal issues. However, a volunteer coach, Bill Courtney, is working tirelessly to assist the lads overcome their difficulties. This documentary provides a realistic view of what life is like for pupils who are less fortunate. Courtney retorts, “You think football promotes character?” “Not at all. Football displays one’s personality.”

13. Wildcats

The fact that Wildcats is about a female football coach sets it apart from the rest of the films on this list. To follow in her father’s footsteps, Molly McGrath (Goldie Hawn) departs her track coaching position at posh Prescot High to become the boys football coach at an inner-city high school in New York City’s South Bronx. Molly’s ex-husband is fighting her for custody of their children, making the situation even more difficult. Wildcats may sound like a serious film, but it’s actually a comedy. For the city championship, Molly must first win over the boys’ respect and then get them in condition. Additionally, LL Cool J, Wesley Snipes, and Woody Harrelson feature in the movie.

14. All the Right Moves

It’s Tom Cruise! From the hit sitcom Coach comes Craig T. Nelson, better known as “Coach.” What else could you possibly want? To get out of his small Pennsylvania town and away from his working-class upbringing, Stefan “Stef” Djordjevic (Cruise) is counting on football to get him to college. In the end, Burt Nickerson (Nelson) kicks him off the team and threatens to keep him there, unless he changes his ways.

15. Underdogs

Underdogs

“Everything in the town depends on this football game” movies are all the rage at the moment. Because it is set in Canton, Ohio, and is based on a genuine story, this makes sense. Of course, a new coach is brought in to rescue a faltering team in an unconventional way. The quarterback develops feelings for the girlfriend of the opposing quarterback. When his father is being sued by his employer, the firm he works for plans to shift its manufacturing to Mexico, resulting in the loss of jobs in the area. Charity football between the opposite teams brings together all of these disparate elements in a dramatic approach.

16. The Longshots

The Longshots, a family film starring Ice Cube and Keke Palmer, is based on the true story of 11-year-old Jasmine Plummer, the first female to compete in a Pop Warner football championship. As a little girl, Jasmine’s father abandoned her and her uncle (Ice Cube) became a father figure in her life, encouraging her to play football. It is indeed directed by Fred Durst of Limp Bizkit.

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