Over 100 million people tuned in this past weekend to view the Chiefs win over the 49ers in the 58th annual Super Bowl. While I must admit I was mainly watching for Taylor Swift spottings and Usher’s halftime performance, I still did get sucked into the final minutes of the tense overtime. In honor of the big game and Black History Month, today’s throwback film is a heartwarming, classic football story.
“Remember the Titans” was a box office hit when it premiered in 2000, grossing $26,654,715 in its first weekend alone. Directed by Boaz Yakin, this football classic is loosely inspired by the true story of the integration of the T.C. High School football team in Alexandria, Virginia, in the early 1970s. Not only does the film highlight how sports can help foster friendships, build loyalty and trust, and transform communities, it also addresses issues of racism and discrimination. Portrayed by Denzel Washington, the story of Herman Boone’s task to unite a football team when the city of Alexandria consolidated three high schools shows how overcoming personal prejudices and teamwork can lead to the ultimate victory.
The film opens at a funeral for an unknown person in 1981 before flashing back ten years prior to the newly integrated T.C. Williams High School. Head coach Bill Yoast is shown leading a team of all white players through summer training when he is informed that a new coach, Herman Boone, has been assigned to his staff.
While Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court case outlawed segregation in schools in 1954, it wasn’t until the late 1960s and early 1970s that the U.S. government took stricter action on implementing schools’ plans to combat segregation.
In the film, T.C. Williams High School is the only high school in the area that is integrated. To mollify rising racial tensions, the school district decides to move Boone into the head coach position. While Boone first turns down the position in support of Yoast, he does eventually accept it. However, tension between the two coaches comes to a head as Yoast shares with his white players he will be leaving to take on a head coaching position at another school. Upon hearing the news, the players decide to boycott the team, which would cause them to lose their scholarships, if Yoast leaves. Eventually, Yoast decides to serve as Boone’s defensive coordinator.
While early on in training camp the racial divide causes many conflicts, overtime, Boone unites the players, guiding them to overlook their differences and instead see how their similarities can help them win. As the official season starts, Boone is warned by a member of the school board that should he lose even one game, he will be fired. Boone then leads his team through an undefeated season.
However, before the state semi-finals, Yoast is informed that the school board, in an have Boone removed and Yoast placed back as head coach, rigged the Titans game so that they will lose. Though Yoast starts off the movie working against Boone, the film shows his journey through his own racial prejudices as he marches onto the field during the semi-finals to yell at the referee for making biased calls. His advocacy for Boone and his team causes him to lose a nomination for the Football Hall of Fame.
There are many reasons why people watch sports. Regardless of the reason, sporting events, whether they’re the Super Bowl or a local youth league, have served as a way of unifying people of all different backgrounds throughout the years. “Remember the Titans” shows us how to overcome adversity, rise above prejudices, and unite through the love of a game.
“Remember the Titans” is rated PG and can be streamed on Disney+.
