![(L to R) Cuba Gooding Jr in "Jerry Maguire" (1996), Keanu Reeves in "The Replacements" (2000), Warren Beatty in "Heaven Can Wait" (1978), Jamie Foxx and Al Pacino in "Any Given Sunday" (1999), and Sean Astin in "Rudy" (1993) Photo Credit: Sony Pictures/Warner Bros Pictures/Paramount Pictures/Warner Bros Pictures/TriStar Pictures](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Football-Header-1.jpeg?resize=525%2C394&ssl=1)
I have a confession to make, I hate football, but I love football movies. Maybe hate seems a strong word, but it works best for what I’m about to convey. I hate football in the sense that I dedicate no time to it during the season, and I could care less about how any team is doing. It is just not a sport I was ever interested in. I do, however, keep up on the important hubbub of what’s going on in the National Football League (NFL) because social media gives me constant access, and it’s good for social conversations with people who do like football. I do appreciate certain conversations that are had as a collective society about the league’s past transgressions involving racial bias and silent protest, but I’ll leave that there. I don’t want to distract from my current thoughts.
![Workers clean the NFL logo at midfield at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, MN during the lead-up to Super Bowl LII, where the New England Patriots will face the Philadelphia Eagles, on Feb. 2, 2018. Photo Credit: Bill Greene/The Boston Globe via Getty Images](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/NFL-logo.jpeg?ssl=1)
![A group of cheering young people watching a football game together on TV. Image on TV screen is photographer's own. Photo Credit: Getty Images](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Football-on-TV.jpeg?ssl=1)
![A person using their phone. Photo Credit: Getty Images](https://i2.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Social-Media-.jpeg?ssl=1)
![(L to R) Sandra Bullock and Quinton Aaron in "The Blind Side" (2006), Jamie Foxx and Al Pacino in "Any Given Sunday" (1999), Keanu Reeves in "The Replacements" (2000), Chris Rock, Burt Reynolds, and Adam Sandler in "The Longest Yard" (2005), Will Patton and Denzel Washington in "Remember the Titans" (2000), and Billy Bob Thornton in "Friday Night Lights" (2004) Photo Credit: Paramount Pictures/Warner Bros Pictures/Warner Bros Pictures/Paramount Pictures/Walt Disney Pictures/TriStar Pictures/Universal Pictures](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Football-Header.jpg?ssl=1)
![San Francisco 49ers safety Eric Reid (35) and quarterback Colin Kaepernick (7) kneel during the national anthem before an NFL football game against the Los Angeles Rams in Santa Clara, Calif., Monday, Sept. 12, 2016. Photo Credit: AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Colin-Kaepernick-Kneel.jpeg?ssl=1)
I’m involved in football to the point that most people who hate football in America, but like movies are involved. The NFL throws a hell of a concert every year with some football thrown in and that’s as much football as I watch all year, and this year is no different. It’s Super Bowl Weekend and this year’s Super Bowl Halftime Show is provided by the talents of Usher. I have been a fan since high school! But I hate football remember? This brings me back to my original thought, I hate football, but I love FOOTBALL movies.
![Rihanna performs onstage during the Apple Music Super Bowl LVII Halftime Show at State Farm Stadium on February 12, 2023 in Glendale, Arizona. Photo Credit: Christian Petersen/Getty Images](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Rihanna-Halftime-Show.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Super Bowl Grounds crew paint the NFL logo and end zones prior to Super Bowl game between Los Angeles Rams and Pittsburgh Steelers, January 18, 1980 at Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. Photo Credit: Bob Riha, Jr./Getty Images](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/NFL.jpeg?ssl=1)
![A general view of the logo for the Apple Music Super Bowl LVIII Halftime Show Press Conference at Mandalay Bay on February 8, 2024 in Las Vegas, NV. Photo Credit: Perry Knotts/Getty Images](https://i2.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Super-Bowl-Halftime-Show.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Rihanna performs during Apple Music Super Bowl LVII Halftime Show at State Farm Stadium on February 12, 2023 in Glendale, Arizona. Photo Credit: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Roc Nation](https://i2.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Rihanna-Halftime-Show-2.jpeg?ssl=1)
!["Jackpot January / Super Bowl Special" -- Coverage of the CBS Original Series THE PRICE IS RIGHT, scheduled to air on the CBS Television Network. Pictured: Devin Goda. Photo Credit: Michael Yarish/CBS via Getty Images](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Super-Bowl-LVIII.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Apple Music Super Bowl LVIII Halftime Show with music provided by Usher at Allegiant Field in Las Vegas, Nevada. Photo Credit: Apple Music](https://i2.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Super-Bowl-Halftime-Show-Usher.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Usher walks to the stage during the Super Bowl LVIII Pregame & Apple Music Super Bowl LVIII Halftime Show press conference at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center on February 08, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Photo Credit: Ryan Kang/Getty Images](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Usher-Halftime-Show.jpeg?ssl=1)
![(L) Billy Dee Williams in "Brian's Song" (1971), (M) Adam Sandler in "The Waterboy" (1998), (R) John Krasinski in "Leatherheads" (2008), (MB) Quinton Aaron in "The blind Side" (2006) Photo Credit: CBS/Warner Bros Pictures/MTV Films](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Football-Movies--1024x512.jpeg?ssl=1)
It’s something of a phenomenon in the film world, to have an absolute love fest with great football movies while caring less as to who was playing in the game while you were watching that football movie. Because if you were a real football fan, you’d be watching the game instead.
![(L to R) Michael Conrad, Burt Reynolds, and John Steadman in "The Longest Yard" (1974) Photo Credit: Paramount Pictures](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/The-Longest-Yard.jpeg?resize=525%2C786&ssl=1)
But since I’m not. I’m safe in the end zone, that’s how you say it right? So why exactly is it that a good portion of film fans have no interest in the gridiron game, but football in a movie, no matter the subject of the movie, requires your time, attention, and admiration? I’m going to attempt to answer this to the best of my ability based on my own experience with it.
![Adam Sandler in "The Waterboy" (1998) Photo Credit: Touchstone Pictures](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/The-Waterboy.jpeg?resize=525%2C352&ssl=1)
Quite simply, football movies make us feel good. Even the ones that have tragedy, like the 2006 film, We Are Marshall starring Matthew McConaughey, this horrible thing happens to this college football team, but it’s the adversity of the team members left behind against their grief that rises them to greatness and college history books. I believe the spirit of these films is why we’re so invested in them as film viewers. They give us good film memories. You’re often left feeling affected by what you watched positively, and as a result, you always return to watch another one remembering that good feeling. Think about how you felt the first time you watched the 1993 film, Rudy starring Sean Astin, yeah, that’s the feeling I am talking about.
![Directed by McG, Screenplay by Jamie Linden, Story by Jamie Linden, and Cory Helms, Produced by Basil Iwanyk, and McG, Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Matthew Fox, Ian McShane, Anthony Mackie, Kate Mara, January Jones, Brian Geraghty, David Strathairn, with Cinematography by Shane Hurlbut, and Edited by Priscilla Nedd-Friendly, and Gregg London, with Music by Christophe Beck, Production companies: Legendary Pictures, Thunder Road Pictures, and Wonderland Sound and Vision, and Distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures (2006)](https://i2.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/We-Are-Marshall-.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Matthew McConaughey in "We Are Marshall" (2006) Photo Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Matthew-McConeghey-1024x669.png?ssl=1)
![Matthew McConaughey in "We Are Marshall" (2006) Photo Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/We-Are-MArshall--1024x765.png?ssl=1)
![Directed by David Anspaugh, Written by Angelo Pizzo, Produced by Robert N. Fried, and Cary Woods, Starring: Sean Astin, Ned Beatty, Charles S. Dutton, Lili Taylor, and Robert Prosky, with Cinematography by Oliver Wood, and Edited by David Rosenbloom, with Music by Jerry Goldsmith, and Distributed by TriStar Pictures (1993)](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Rudy.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Sean Astin in "Rudy" (1993) Photo Credit: Tristar Pictures](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Sean-Astin.png?ssl=1)
![Sean Astin in "Rudy" (1993) Photo Credit: Tristar Pictures](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Rudy-2-1024x576.jpeg?ssl=1)
The difference between the films and the actual sport, to someone who doesn’t like the actual game is we’re seeing the behind-the-scenes action of how those gridiron moments come to be, making it more interesting, football movies also include stories about how those gridiron moments can affect the players later in life, like in the 2015 film Concussion starring Will Smith, as Bennet Omalu, a forensic pathologist who fights against the National Football League trying to suppress his research on chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) brain degeneration suffered by professional football players. And it’s not just football movies, it’s like this with most sports movies. If there’s a sport you don’t like, but you love the film, you are not alone. The most recent example of this took place with Ted Lasso, while it’s a television series, the same phenomenon occurred. People love this Apple TV+ series about an American football coach, played by Jason Sudeikis, who travels across the pond to coach Soccer in the United Kingdom. Most people who love this show, hate football, and hate soccer. But they know the difference between a field and a pitch all the same.
![Directed by Peter Landesman, Written by Peter Landesman, Based on "Game Brain" by Jeanne Marie Laskas, Produced by Ridley Scott, Giannina Facio, David Wolthoff, Larry Shuman, and Elizabeth Cantillon, Starring: Will Smith, Alec Baldwin, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Arliss Howard, Paul Reiser, Luke Wilson, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, David Morse, Albert Brooks, with Cinematography by Salvatore Totino, and Edited by William Goldenberg, with Music by James Newton Howard, Production companies: Columbia Pictures, LStar Capital, Village Roadshow Pictures, and Scott Free Productions, and Distributed by Sony Pictures Releasing (2015)](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Concussion-.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Will Smith in "Concussion" (2015) Photo Credit: Colombia Pictures](https://i2.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Will-Smith-Concussion--1024x576.webp?ssl=1)
![Dr. Bennet Omalu attends the "Concussion" New York premiere at AMC Loews Lincoln Square on December 16, 2015 in New York City. Photo Credit: Andrew Toth/FilmMagic](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Bennet-Omalu-.jpeg?ssl=1)
![NFL logo](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/NFL-745x1024.png?ssl=1)
![Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is a neurodegenerative disease linked to repeated trauma to the head. The encephalopathy symptoms can include behavioral problems, mood problems, and problems with thinking. The disease often gets worse over time and can result in dementia. Most documented cases have occurred in athletes involved in striking-based combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, mixed martial arts, and Muay Thai—hence its original name dementia pugilistica (Latin for "boxer's dementia")—and contact sports such as American football, Australian rules football, professional wrestling, ice hockey, rugby, and association football (soccer), and military combat arms occupations. Other risk factors include being in the military, prior domestic violence, and repeated banging of the head. The exact amount of trauma required for the condition to occur is unknown, and as of 2022 definitive diagnosis can only occur at autopsy. The disease is classified as a tauopathy. There is no specific treatment for the disease. Rates of CTE have been found to be about 30% among those with a history of multiple head injuries; however, population rates are unclear. Research in brain damage as a result of repeated head injuries began in the 1920s, at which time the condition was known as dementia pugilistica or "boxer's dementia", "boxer's madness", or "punch drunk syndrome". It has been proposed that the rules of some sports be changed as a means of prevention. Photo Credit: Google Images](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/CTE.png?ssl=1)
![AppleTV+'s Ted Lasso, starring Jason Sudeikis, Hannah Waddingham, Jeremy Swift, Phil Dunster, Brett Goldstein, Brendan Hunt, Nick Mohammed, Juno Temple, Sarah Niles; developed by Jason Sudeikis, Bill Lawrence, Brendan Hunt and Joe Kelly for Ruby's Tuna Inc., Doozer, Universal Television, Warner Bros. Television Studios and distributed by Warner Bros. Television Distribution, Apple Inc. (2020-2023)](https://i2.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Ted-Lasso-Season-3.jpeg?ssl=1)
![AppleTV+ Streaming Subscription Service](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/AppleTV-Logo-1024x538.png?ssl=1)
![Jason Sudeikis as Ted Lasso in a scene from Season 3 of the Apple TV+ series, "Ted Lasso" (2023) Photo Credit: Apple TV+](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Jason-Sudeikis-1024x631.webp?ssl=1)
![This image released by Apple TV shows Brendan Hunt, from left, Brett Goldstein, Nick Mohammed and Jason Sudeikis in a scene from the season three finale of "Ted Lasso." Photo Credit: Colin Hutton/Apple TV via AP](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Ted-Lasso--1024x682.jpeg?ssl=1)
It’s a conflicting feeling, you hate sports, but you love sports movies. I’ve narrowed my discussion to the sport of football, this being Super Bowl Weekend and all. And there are so many football movies to choose from, I even love some more than others, and some even have iconic film moments never to be forgotten. When you think about why you love a football movie it often has a scene that remains unforgettable and sends those shivers through you as you connect with the characters’ journey on film.
![(L) Wesley Snipes, (M) Goldie Hawn, and (R) Woody Harrelson in "Wildcats" (1986) Photo Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Wildcats-.jpeg?resize=525%2C323&ssl=1)
Some of these football movies are not just written for the screen, but real moments and memories in people’s lives that were lived and then adapted for film. They were moments that became historical, or people that became legendary and it’s appreciation for their journey that allows for a director and screenwriter to adapt it into a story we all love as film viewers. It’s incredibly hard to write this and try to narrow down my favorite football movie, I don’t simply have one film above them all. I love them all for sentimental reasons as the song says. I have the top ten football movies you can check out in another blog post and see if your favorite film made the team.
![(L) Will Patton and (R) Denzel Washington in "Remember the Titans" (2000) Photo Credit: Walt Disney Pictures](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Remebr-the-Titans-.png?resize=525%2C347&ssl=1)
I do have certain football movies that I’ve watched more than others and I still enjoy them the same as the first time I saw them. One that comes to mind is the 1999 film, Any Given Sunday with Al Pacino. The ensemble cast is unbelievable, so many people. Besides Pacino, you have Cameron Diaz, Dennis Quaid, Jamie Foxx, James Woods, LL Cool J, Ann-Margret, Lauren Holly, Matthew Modine, John C. McGinley, Charlton Heston, Bill Bellamy,Lela Rochon, Aaron Eckhart, Elizabeth Berkley, and NFL players Jim Brown and Lawrence Taylor. If you blink, you’ll miss someone in this film. But it’s also an Oliver Stone film, and he’s been known to direct a good film or two. There’s this iconic inspirational speech by Tony D’Amato (Pacino) towards the end of the film when the team is at their lowest, and as a coach, he’s at his lowest, and he just embraces that moment and gives the players this iconic inspirational speech that you would be stupid not to apply in real life that’s how good it is. It just gives you all those film feels when Pacino is doing what he does on screen in any film. That’s when I fell in love with that particular film. It’s still to this day one of my favorite monologues in film.
![Directed by Oliver Stone, Screenplay by John Logan, and Oliver Stone, Story by Daniel Pyne, and John Logan, Based on "On Any Given Sunday" by Pat Toomay, Produced by Lauren Shuler Donner, Dan Halsted, and Clayton Townsend, Starring: Al Pacino, Cameron Diaz, Dennis Quaid, James Woods, Jamie Foxx, LL Cool J, Matthew Modine, Charlton Heston, Ann-Margret, Aaron Eckhart, John C. McGinley, with Cinematography by Salvatore Totino, and Edited by Stuart Levy, Thomas J. Nordberg, Keith Salmon, and Stuart Waks, with Music by Robbie Robertson, Paul Kelly, and Richard Horowitz, Production companies: The Donners' Company, and Ixtlan Productions, Distributed by Warner Bros. (1999)](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Any-Given-Sunday-.jpeg?ssl=1)
![(L) Jamie Foxx, (M) Al Pacino, and (R) LL Cool J in in "Any Given Sunday" (1999) Photo Credit: Warner Bros Pictures](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Al-Pacino-1024x672.png?ssl=1)
![Cameron Diaz in "Any Given Sunday" (1999) Photo Credit: Warner Bros Pictures](https://i2.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Screen-Shot-2024-02-11-at-7.02.35-AM.png?ssl=1)
![Dennis Quaid in "Any Given Sunday" (1999) Photo Credit: Warner Bros Pictures](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Dennis-Quaid.png?ssl=1)
![Jamie Foxx in "Any Given Sunday" (1999) Photo Credit: Warner Bros Pictures](https://i2.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Screen-Shot-2024-02-11-at-7.03.52-AM.png?ssl=1)
![James Woods in "Any Given Sunday" (1999) Photo Credit: Warner Bros Pictures](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/James-Woods-1024x576.png?ssl=1)
![LL Cool J in "Any Given Sunday" (1999) Photo Credit: Warner Bros Pictures](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/LL-Cool-J.png?ssl=1)
![(L) Cameron Diaz, and (R) Ann-Margret in "Any Given Sunday" (1999) Photo Credit: Warner Bros Pictures](https://i2.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Ann-Margret.png?ssl=1)
![Matthew Modine in "Any Given Sunday" (1999) Photo Credit: Warner Bros Pictures](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Matthew-Modine-.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Lauren Holly in "Any Given Sunday" (1999) Photo Credit: Warner Bros Pictures](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Lauren-Holly.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Charlton Heston in "Any Given Sunday" (1999) Photo Credit: Warner Bros Pictures](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Charlton-Heston-.jpeg?ssl=1)
![John C McGinley in "Any Given Sunday" (1999) Photo Credit: Warner Bros Pictures](https://i2.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/John-C-McGinley-.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Bill Bellamy in "Any Given Sunday" (1999) Photo Credit: Warner Bros Pictures](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Bill-Bellamy-.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Lela Rochon in "Any Given Sunday" (1999) Photo Credit: Warner Bros Pictures](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Lela-Rochon.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Aaron Eckhart in "Any Given Sunday" (1999) Photo Credit: Warner Bros Pictures](https://i2.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Aaron-Eckhart.png?ssl=1)
![Elizabeth Berkley in "Any Given Sunday" (1999) Photo Credit: Warner Bros Pictures](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Elizabeth-Berkley-1024x576.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Ex-NFL football players (L) Lawrence Taylor, and (R) Jim Brown in "Any Given Sunday" (1999) Photo Credit: Warner Bros Pictures](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Screen-Shot-2024-02-11-at-7.37.52-AM.png?ssl=1)
![Oliver Stone in "Any Given Sunday" (1999) Photo Credit: Warner Bros Pictures](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Screen-Shot-2024-02-11-at-7.38.32-AM-1024x425.png?ssl=1)
![Al Pacino in "Any Given Sunday" (1999) Photo Credit: Warner Bros Pictures](https://i2.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Screen-Shot-2024-02-11-at-7.38.56-AM.png?ssl=1)
![Al Pacino in "Any Given Sunday" (1999) Photo Credit: Warner Bros Pictures](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Screen-Shot-2024-02-11-at-7.39.30-AM-1024x473.png?ssl=1)
You can watch Al Pacino’s iconic inspirational speech from Any Given Sunday below:
My senior quote for my yearbook in 2001 was a film quote, so I have always had a thing for a great film quote. What was the quote you ask? It was from the 1999 film, The Matrix. Morpheus’ question to Neo before he enters the Matrix, when he’s readying his mind to understand what waking up will be like to his mental reality.
![(L) Laurence Fishburne, and (R) Keanu Reeves in "The Matrix" (1999) Photo Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/The-Matrix-GIF.gif?resize=480%2C270&ssl=1)
“Have you ever had a dream, Neo, that you were so sure was real? What if you were unable t wake from that dream? How would you know the difference between the dream world and the real world?”
Morpheus – The Matrix (1999)
Football movies are full of great quotes and great moments that rival the spirit and push us and affect us to succeed on our own journey, no matter how difficult. There are football movies that tell stories of struggle, and resilience, and also of tragedy and celebration. There is no doubt a football movie for everyone. Your children, if you have them, probably would love the 1994 film, Little Giants starring Rick Moranis, and Ed O’Neill coaching youth football and one of the teams, the Little Giants, who don’t have a track record of winning team, but find their way through the adversity through the struggle of youth. Even kids can find a football movie they love! There is a football movie for kids of all ages! While the sport may not be liked by everyone, most people know what you’re talking about if you scream at them to “Show Me the Money” like Jerry Maguire (Tom Cruise) on that phone call to Rod Tidwell (Cuba Gooding Jr.) in the 1996 football film.
![90s Football Movies from L to R: "Necessary Roughness" (1991), "The Program" (1993), "Rudy" (1993), "Little Giants" (1994), "Jerry Maguire" (1996), "Air Bud: Golden Receiver" (1998), "The Waterboy" (1998), "Varsity Blues" (1999), "Any Given Sunday" (1999) Photo Credit: Reddit](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/90s-Football-Movies-.webp?ssl=1)
![(L) James Van Der Beek, and Jon Voight in "Varsity Blues" (1999) Photo Credit: Paramount Pictures](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Varsity-Blues-1024x677.jpeg?ssl=1)
![(L) Henry Winkler, and Adam Sandler in "The Waterboy" (1998) Photo Credit: Touchstone Pictures](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/The-waterboy-1-1024x683.jpeg?ssl=1)
![(L) James Caan, and (R) Craig Sheffer in "The Program" (1993) Photo Credit: Touchstone Pictures](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/The-Program-1024x576.jpeg?ssl=1)
![(L) Scott Bakula, and (R) Sinbad in "Necessary Roughness" (1991) Photo Credit: Paramount Pictures](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/necessaryroughness1.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Directed by Duwayne Dunham, Screenplay by James Ferguson, Robert Shallcross, Tommy Swerdlow, and Michael Goldberg, Story by James Ferguson, and Robert Shallcross, Produced by Arne Schmidt, Starring: Rick Moranis, Ed O'Neill, John Madden, with Cinematography by Janusz Kamiński, and Edited by Donn Cambern, with Music by John Debney, Production company: Amblin Entertainment, Distributed by Warner Bros. (1994)](https://i2.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Little-Giants-689x1024.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Rick Moranis in "Little Giants" (1994) Photo Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Rick-Moranis.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Ed O' Neill in "Little Giants" (1994) Photo Credit: Warner Bros Pictures](https://i2.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Ed-ONeill-1024x576.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Devon Sawa and Shawna Waldron in "Little Giants" (1994) Photo Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures](https://i2.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Little-giants-team.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Tom Cruise in "Jerry Maguire" (1996) Photo Credit: TriStar Pictures](https://i2.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Show-Me-the-Money--1024x640.png?ssl=1)
![Cuba Gooding Jr. in "Jerry Maguire" (1996) Photo Credit: TriStar Pictures](https://i2.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Rod-Tidwell.jpeg?ssl=1)
Cuba Gooding Jr. winning for his football movie in 1997 is one of my top ten Oscar moments. When he won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, his acceptance speech became Academy history, and everyone watching, including myself was so happy for him in that moment. Rod Tidwell remains, to me, one of his best performances in his acting career. There have been other football movies that have made their way to the Oscars, Heaven Can Wait from 1978 made it to the Oscars, the film was nominated for nine Academy Awards, with Warren Beatty becoming the second person (after Orson Welles for Citizen Kane) to be nominated for producing (Best Picture), directing (Best Director with Buck Henry), writing (Best Adapted Screenplay with Elaine May) and acting (Best Actor) for the same film, and the film won for Best Art Direction. The cast includes Beatty, Julie Christie, and Jack Warden. This further proves my point even more that football movies are worth falling in love with because some of them are pretty good.
![Actor Cuba Gooding Jr holds up his Oscar after winning the Best Supporting Actor Award for his role in "Jerry Maguire" during the 69th Academy Awards 24 March. The awards are being held in the Shrine Auditorium. Photo Credit: Timothy A. Clary/AFP via Getty Images](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Cuba-Gooding-Jr-.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Cuba Gooding Jr. in "Jerry Maguire" (1996) Photo Credit: TriStar Pictures](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Rod-Tidwell-.jpeg?ssl=1)
![](https://i2.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Cuba-Gooding-jr-Oscars.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Academy Awards Oscar Statue](https://i2.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/oscars-PNG-1-518x1024.png?ssl=1)
![Warren Beatty (C) attends an event in Washington, D.C., on June 27, 1978. Photo Credit: Guy DeLort/WWD/Penske Media via Getty Images](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Warren-Beatty.jpeg?ssl=1)
![American actor, writer and director Orson Welles (1915 - 1985), circa 1970. Photo Credit: Silver Screen Collection/Getty Images](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Orsen-Welles.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Directed by Orson Welles, Screenplay by Herman J. Mankiewicz, and Orson Welles, Produced by Orson Welles, Starring: Orson Welles, Joseph Cotten, Dorothy Comingore, Everett Sloane, Ray Collins, George Coulouris, Agnes Moorehead, Paul Stewart, Ruth Warrick, Erskine Sanford, William Alland, with Cinematography by Gregg Toland, Edited by Robert Wise, with Music by Bernard Herrmann, Production companies: RKO Radio Pictures, Mercury Productions, and Distributed by RKO Radio Pictures. (1941)](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Citizen-Kane.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Directed by Warren Beatty, Buck Henry, Screenplay by Elaine May, and Warren Beatty, Based on "Heaven Can Wait" by Harry Segall, Produced by Warren Beatty, Starring: Warren Beatty, Julie Christie, James Mason, Charles Grodin, Dyan Cannon, Buck Henry, Vincent Gardenia, Jack Warden, with Cinematography by William A. Fraker, Edited by Robert C. Jones, and Don Zimmerman, with Music by Dave Grusin, and Distributed by Paramount Pictures (1978)](https://i2.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Heaven-Can-Wait--672x1024.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Candice Bergen (L) and Buck Henry (C) attend a screening in Hollywood, California, on June 27, 1978. Photo Credit: Alan Berliner/WWD/Penske Media via Getty Images](https://i2.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Buck-Henry.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Elaine Iva May (née Berlin; born April 21, 1932) is an American comedian, filmmaker, playwright, and actress. She first gained fame in the 1950s for her improvisational comedy routines with Mike Nichols, before transitioning her career regularly breaking the mold as a writer and director of several critically acclaimed films. She has received numerous awards, including a BAFTA Award, a Grammy Award, and a Tony Award. She was honored with the National Medal of Arts from President Barack Obama in 2013, and an Honorary Academy Award in 2022. Photo Credit: Wikipedia Commons](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Elaine-May.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Warren Beatty in "Heaven Can Wait" (1978) Photo Credit: Paramount Pictures](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Warren-Beatty-2-1024x576.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Julie Christie in "Heaven Can Wait" (1978) Photo Credit: Paramount Pictures](https://i1.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Julie-Christie--1024x550.jpeg?ssl=1)
![Jack Warden in "Heaven Can Wait" (1978) Photo Credit: Paramount Pictures](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Jack-Warden-1024x550.jpeg?ssl=1)
It’s the stories around the game of football that we love, even if some of those films involve a game, it’s different watching a football game in film versus an actual broadcast game. It’s weird almost, but gratifying, nonetheless. Some football movies have great stories of sports history to tell, while others just seek to make us feel good through those stories on screen. America is due for a feel-good football movie; we have had a rough few years.
![Billy Bob Thornton in "Friday Night Lights" (2004) Photo Credit: Universal Pictures](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Friday-Night-Lights.webp?resize=525%2C295&ssl=1)
Film viewing is an emotional journey, you often connect what you’re watching to how you’re feeling. We often say when choosing a film to watch that “we’re not in the mood or we are in the mood,” your film desire is directly correlated to your feelings in the moments you’re choosing a film to watch or see in a theater. It makes sense then that if football movies are often associated with feeling good, we would embrace them and have a love affair with them. The game itself is a complicated relationship with the American collective, everyone has their reason if they don’t like football, be it political, social, or racial discrimination in team ownership and coaching, or the sport itself. But ask a film viewer if they hate football movies and I’m inclined to believe the result would be more positive than negative.
![Rob Brown in "The Express" (2008) Photo Credit: Universal Pictures](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/The-Express.png?resize=525%2C263&ssl=1)
So, if you have nothing invested in the big game on Sunday, and if you’re only in it for the Usher concert that’s interrupted by a football game, maybe you might want to instead watch a football movie to get in the mood for the game, even after the halftime show keeping with your good feelings from all that great music you can end your night with a great gridiron film to make you feel triumphant in your ability to hate football, but love football movies. I know I will.
![https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/cropped-d3d0f4de5c874cf7a06b2f50e0bc7820-2-10.png?resize=250%2C250&ssl=1](https://i0.wp.com/moviestohistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/cropped-d3d0f4de5c874cf7a06b2f50e0bc7820-2-10.png?resize=250%2C250&ssl=1)