We Are Marshall (2006)

When a plane crash claims the lives of members of the Marshall University football team and some of its fans, the team's new coach and his surviving players try to keep the football program alive.

Director:

McG

Writers:

Jamie Linden (screenplay), Cory Helms (story)

Stars:

Matthew McConaughey, Matthew Fox, Anthony Mackie

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Matthew McConaughey	...	Jack Lengyel
Matthew Fox	...	Red Dawson
Anthony Mackie	...	Nate Ruffin
David Strathairn	...	President Dedmon
Ian McShane	...	Paul Griffen
Kate Mara	...	Annie Cantrell
January Jones	...	Carole Dawson
Kimberly Williams-Paisley	...	Sandy Lengyel
Arlen Escarpeta	...	Reggie Oliver
Brian Geraghty	...	Tom Bogdan
Tommy Cresswell	...	Gene Morehouse
Christian Kanupke	...	Young Keith Morehouse
Nina Jones	...	Mrs. Morehouse
Kevin Atkins	...	George Olson
Mark Patton	...	Bill James

Storyline

In November, 1970, virtually the entire football team and coaches of Marshall University (Huntington, W.V.) die in a plane crash. That spring, led by Nate Ruffin, a player who was ill and missed the fatal flight, students rally to convince the board of governors to play the 1971 season. The college president, Don Dedman, must find a coach, who then must find players. They petition the NCAA to allow freshmen to play, and coach Jack Lengyel motivates and leads young players at the same time that he reexamines the Lombardi creed that winning is the only thing. The father and the fiancée of a player who died find strength to move on. Can Marshall win even one game in 1971?

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Plot Keywords:

football | university | coach | marshall university | football team | 

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Taglines:

A true story

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Genres:

Drama | Sport

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for emotional thematic material, a crash scene, and mild language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 December 2006 (USA)

Also Known As:

Untitled Marshall University Football Project

Filming Locations:

Atlanta, Georgia, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$65,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$8,582,508, 24 December 2006

Gross USA:

$43,545,364

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros., Thunder Road Pictures, Legendary Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

131 min

Sound Mix:

DTS SDDS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Anthony Mackie and Brian Geraghty would go on to star together in The Hurt Locker in 2008.

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Goofs

You can clearly hear tight Kevlar snare heads in the soundtrack. Kevlar drum heads weren't in use till the late-'80s.

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Quotes

Jack Lengyel: When I heard about what had happened, your situation, the only thing I could think about was the four of them. I thought about how much they mean to me, about how bad it would hurt if... well if I was to lose them. Then I thought about a team, and a school, and a town thats gotta be hurtin' real bad. And I thought, hell, maybe I could help.

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Crazy Credits

There are no opening credits, not even a title.

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Connections

Featured in WatchMojo: Top 10 Matthew McConaughey Performances (REDUX) (2014)

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Soundtracks

Paranoid
Written by Ozzy Osbourne (as John Osbourne), Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler (as Terence Butler) and Bill Ward (as William Ward)
Performed by Black Sabbath
Licensed courtesy of Downlane Limited and Sanctuary Records Group Limited

User Reviews

McConaughey and Co. Deliver

I'm not sure I comprehend critics calling the film "predictable". OF COURSE going into the film one knows the entire premise of the film... Anyhow... the film does an excellent job of portraying the effect of the plane crash on a variety of characters. Both Fox and Straithairn are particularly moving. McConaughey's character is somewhat goofy, but his performance is believable. It is one of the better sports films I've seen of late and puts films like "Invincible" and "Glory Road" to shame.

Remember the Titans- 9/10 Brian's Song (the original version)- 8.5/10 We Are Marshall- 8/10 Hoosiers- 7.5/10 Rudy- 7/10 Invincible- 5/10 Glory Road- 4/10