A flash echoes through the stadium, and then you hear a low, anxious voice come from behind. “Mhmm, yeah this is my sanctuary.” Any player or coach knows this sound, that of the overhead lights turning on while walking onto the football field. And hearing this takes me back to the days of junior pro, back to when days were simpler and easy.
But everyone knows this scene from the classic movie, Remember the Titans. Sitting on the edge of my couch cushion, gripping the corners and getting the feeling of pregame nerves all over again. The chance of the first season win is coming into view.
Remember the Titans was released in 2000 and was based on the true story of T.C. Williams, a high school in Alexandria, Virginia. In the early ’70s, when the movie takes place, the color of a person was one of the most significant issues that people had to deal with. The district of Alexandria voted to make T.C. Williams High School integrated, combining both a black school and white school. During all of this upheaval, a white coach, Yoast, was passed over and the job was given to a black coach, Boone.
The movie is not just about football, but also shows the perseverance that some took to overcome looking at someone differently because of the color of their skin. The movie shows how to become one with each other and work together. But, even only going through junior pro football I still had that sense of family with my boys. If one of us went down, we would run over to our teammate and throw out a hand to pick them up. Because if one us falls, we all fall.
A football team isn’t about one person but about how multiple positions must come together to make a good team. Any group takes the actions of everyone to make it work correctly. History shows us this.
“Anyone know what this place is?” asks Coach Boone. “This is Gettysburg.”
He then compares that battle to the modern-day, saying that the football team is fighting a battle similar to that which was fought on that field a hundred years before. Gettysburg was brother vs. brother, north vs. south, contrasting the struggle of the movie: brother vs. brother.
“Take a lesson from the dead. If we don’t come together right now on this hallowed ground, we too will be destroyed.”
It was this scene that showed me that this movie was more than just a football movie, but one about family. Even today, this movie stays true to what it means to be a team. After this scene, the team starts to form bonds that show them overlooking color. No one is comfortable talking about the situations we face today, but racism is still an issue that must be discussed.
There have been times in my life when this movie has shown me hating my brother. It could have been the littlest of things or something major, but even if I didn’t act upon my actions, God still convicted me, saying “Why do you hate your brother when he is trying to make you better?” In no way am I perfect, and in my past, I have said and done things that could come off as racist, but those were not my intentions. They happened out of anger. And yes, I would apologize later for my actions and no one likes to admit they are wrong, but Julius says it best, “Attitude reflects leadership, captain.”
When tragedy happens later in the movie, it brings everyone together. During this scene of the film, I go back to the day my grandfather died. It was a rough day for everyone, but people who hadn’t talked to me in years were texting and calling to make sure I was all right. Most of them were the old buddies that I had made in junior pro.
It seems crazy that it can take one tragedy to bring people back together. One for all and all for one; we see this when Gary, captain of the defense, talks to Julius: “I was scared of you Julius, but I realized I was only hating my brother.”
We need to remember what it is like to live in someone else’s shoes so that we can understand them. Both coaches live different lives, and they don’t see what the other suffers. The movie can teach us to slow down and take a look at someone else’s situation.
If we cannot understand where another person is coming from, we can be quick to assume things that aren’t true. During the last game of the Titans’ season, the team goes into the locker room for halftime. The team starts talking about how they want to leave tonight perfect. When the reflection of the season starts happening, Coach Yoast steps in to speak.
“I hope you boys have learned as much from me as I have from you. You’ve taught this city to trust the soul of a man rather than the look of him, and it’s about time I join the club.”
This quote sums up the movie very well, that it isn’t about the color of the man if he is good or bad, but what comes from the soul of the man. Instead of judging a book by the cover, next time sit down and understand the book.
Overall, the movie shows us what it takes to step up and be a leader. On a scale of 1 to 10, I would give it an 8.5 out of 10. If a needed pick-me-up is called for, then Remember the Titans is your movie for a weekend get-together or even a family movie night.