Un héroe en la universidad

Paul (Scott Bakula) was a great high school quarterback in Texas, where he never lost a game. However, his father died after football season was over and Paul felt obligated to take over the family farm. Therefore, he turned down scholarships and never went to college. But, now Texas State wants him, wants him badly. The university has had a long history of NCAA violations and, consequently, is having trouble recruiting players. But, with a new, straight-arrow coach (Hector Elizondo), his assistant (Robert Loggia), and a dedicated college president, Texas State is trying to turn the tide. Paul, although he is now 34, agrees to join the team and the freshman class. Wouldn't you know it, though, he soon has a run-in with an attractive female professor (Harley Jane Kozak), who refuses to accept his growing interest in her. And, with a ragtag roster of only 17 players, playing both offense and defense, can they win any games? This is a fine football flick with some elements of romance thrown in, too, to please any viewer. The cast is very nice, with Bakula, Elizondo, Loggia, Sinbad, a tiny-bit- pretentious Kozak, a lovely Kathy Ireland, a very funny Rob Schneider, and a hilarious Larry Miller whooping it up all the way. The football scenes are quite fine as well, which should please any true gridiron fan. Yes, unfortunately, the film looks dated, with its out of fashion costumes and its mediocre camera work. The Texas setting, however, is rather welcome. All in all, if you love the game-with-a-pigskin, you must arrange to view this one. You will find it greatly entertaining. Fans of romcoms, too, who are running out of material, will be pleased with the efforts here as well.

Necessary Roughness is a fun movie that if it isn't taken too seriously can be very enjoyable. The first to worst Texas State team finds itself with a team of mostly "non-athletes" that came about after the school held open tryouts. The entire championship team from the year before had been suspended for violations. Scott Bakula plays a competent lead as a middle aged college athlete. Sinbad adds some fun to the story as another "elder athlete". Kathy Ireland, while no actress, does add some eye candy to the film. I also like this film in that this rag-tag team does not reach the heights of being #1 or making it to a championship game. The "big game" of this film is when Texas State plays the the #1 ranked college team. The film has plenty of laughs, a touch of drama and competent script writing and players. Watch it on a Sunday afternoon when nothing else is on.

So why review a 21 year old movie? Easy. Good movies have no expiration date, and this is certainly one of them. At the time, the NCAA was going through all sorts of problems with player bribes, payoffs, faked grades, violations from steroids to hookers to cars for the players. This movie was brave enough to face these problems and gives an accurate picture of trying to build a football team from a bunch of wanna be's and never were's. Scott Bakula is perfect in the role, neither attempting to affect a fake Texas drawl nor over playing the role. Hector Elizondo and Robert Loggia, two veteran actors who could easily dominate the film, instead add their considerable talents to make the film believable. Several great touches are added, including Rob Schneider as the announcer for the games, and the appearance of a prison team arranged by Dean Elias (Larry Miller, the schmuck you love to hate) adds an extreme and interesting comic scene. Dick Butkus, Earl Campbell, Roger Craig, Ben Davidson, Tony Dorsett, Evander Holyfield, Ed "Too Tall" Jones, Jim Kelly, Jerry Rice, Hershel Walker, and Randy White are the prison football players, and if you have to ask who they are, you need to head over to the NFL Hall of Fame (Except for Evander Holyfield, former Heavyweight Champion of the World). The film is cohesive, the language is minimal, and the violence is limited to the football field, practice, and a slight altercation between two teams at Billy Bob's. Collectible if you are a fan of good sports movies, and definitely a great film for the family on a Saturday night.

You can read most details of the film in other, more complete reviews, pro and con. But I need to add an oddity.

The movie team, the Texas State University Fighting Armadillos, battles to a pounding against the Southwest Texas State Bobcats in one game. The point I want to make is that the REAL Southwest Texas State in San Marcos, TX changed its name in real life to Texas State University--San Marcos (the "--San Marcos" designation has also recently been dropped). So, in the movie, the problematic TSU university team in green and white plays its own real-life future alter ego, the real maroon-and-gold SWT Bobcats, complete with cheerleaders. The Armadillo mascot for Texas State in the movie is fictitious, but the Bobcats are real.

Since the movie was made in 1991 and the name change took place in 2003, the two movie opponent school names -- before anyone knew about the future name change -- eventually became the same university in reality.

Footnote: I graduated from Southwest Texas State in 1978 in journalism, with a minor in art. When the name change happened, the Alumni Association wrote and asked if I wanted a new diploma with the new college name, which I did opt for. So they sent me a new diploma with the new school name. I now have two diplomas from the same university (different names) with the same degree and minor.

According to WOAI-AM radio station in San Antonio, the total cost of the name change and resulting associated do-overs (stationary letterheads, repainting, etc) was $350,000, paid for by private donations.

In the pantheon of football movies it's not the best, but not the worst by far. It's a decent comedy for the generation when it came out. The ensemble cast worked well together and anything with Kathy Ireland in it can't be all that bad. Sinbad also looked like someone who may have played football before going to teaching. 6/10