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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writer:
Jerrold Freedman (writer)
Release Date:
5 December 1973 (USA) more
Plot:
A high school athlete is torn between his father, who wants him to get a football scholarship, and his coach, who wants a winning season. | add synopsis
User Comments:
A dark look at high school football. more (4 total)
Cast
(Credited cast)| Ben Johnson | ... | Dwayne Birdsong | |
| Gary Busey | ... | David Lee Birdsong | |
| Larry Hagman | ... | Coach Marshall | |
| William Lucking | ... | Dennis Birdsong | |
| David Doyle | ... | Mr. Schmidt | |
| Mimi Saffian | ... | Mary Louise Schmidt | |
| Peggy Rea | ... | Mrs. Birdsong | |
| Craig Richard Nelson | ... | Michael Braun | |
| Michael Talbott | ... | Bubba Montgomery | |
| Val Avery | ... | Frank Dorsdale | |
| Jan Clayton | ... | Blanche Birdsong | |
| Misty Rowe | ... | Holly | |
| William Hansen | ... | Mr. Millsaps | |
| Michael Lembeck | ... | Reuben | |
| rest of cast listed alphabetically: | |||
| Marlyn Bingham | |||
| Asher Brauner | ... | C.C. | |
| Lee Delano | ... | Besco | |
| Richard Hamilton | |||
| Bert Verrall | ... | Football Player - Center | |
Additional Details
Also Known As:
Bloodsport (USA) (alternative spelling)
Poetry in Motion (USA) (working title)
more
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
90 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
1.33 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (Westrex Recording System)
Company:
FAQ
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Message Boards
Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Blood Sport (1973) (TV)| Recent Posts (updated daily) | User |
|---|---|
| Redundant Looking for a copy of this movie either video or DVD | singlemaleparent |
| Have a Copy of this Movie? | marymena |
| Looking for a copy of this movie on DVD | staka-1 |
Recommendations
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| Friday Night Lights | Remember the Titans | Facing the Giants | All the Right Moves | We Are Marshall |
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Related Links
| Full cast and crew | Company credits | IMDb Drama section |
| IMDb USA section | Add this title to MyMovies |

A small town where the local High School football team is the center of attention is the basis of this made for TV movie from the early 70's. Gary Busey is the teams star player who has been groomed and molded by his father played by Ben Johnson. The end result of his years of turning his son into the ultimate football player hopefully will be a scholarship to a big school followed by a pro career. Larry Hagman is the teams' coach who will essentially stop at nothing to have a winning season.
A number of topics are touched on in this film. A schools obsession with their sports programs. A parents obsession with their child achieving athletic stardom. The pressures of a high school athlete faced with having to win and be the best. Other films that had these same issues i.e. All The Right Moves, The Program were more in depth but this early 70's picture however does a pretty good job for a made for TV film. Hagmans performance gives the viewer a glimpse of what his famous "Dallas" character JR, which would emerge a few years later, would be like. Another sports film that has topics similar to this one is "Fear Strikes Out" with Anthony Perkins and Karl Malden