Necessary Roughness (1991)

Paul (Scott Bakula) was a great high school quarterback in Texas, where he never lost a game. However, his father died after football season was over and Paul felt obligated to take over the family farm. Therefore, he turned down scholarships and never went to college. But, now Texas State wants him, wants him badly. The university has had a long history of NCAA violations and, consequently, is having trouble recruiting players. But, with a new, straight-arrow coach (Hector Elizondo), his assistant (Robert Loggia), and a dedicated college president, Texas State is trying to turn the tide. Paul, although he is now 34, agrees to join the team and the freshman class. Wouldn't you know it, though, he soon has a run-in with an attractive female professor (Harley Jane Kozak), who refuses to accept his growing interest in her. And, with a ragtag roster of only 17 players, playing both offense and defense, can they win any games? This is a fine football flick with some elements of romance thrown in, too, to please any viewer. The cast is very nice, with Bakula, Elizondo, Loggia, Sinbad, a tiny-bit- pretentious Kozak, a lovely Kathy Ireland, a very funny Rob Schneider, and a hilarious Larry Miller whooping it up all the way. The football scenes are quite fine as well, which should please any true gridiron fan. Yes, unfortunately, the film looks dated, with its out of fashion costumes and its mediocre camera work. The Texas setting, however, is rather welcome. All in all, if you love the game-with-a-pigskin, you must arrange to view this one. You will find it greatly entertaining. Fans of romcoms, too, who are running out of material, will be pleased with the efforts here as well.

Fmovies: The Texas State University Fighting Armadillos face NCAA sanctions after multiple infractions. The old players are all expelled and the old coaches fired. Carver Purcell (Fred Dalton Thompson) hires coach Ed Gennero (Hector Elizondo) to run a clean program with no pressure to win. Gennero talks defense coach Wally Rig (Robert Loggia) to join him. There are no scholarships and the players have to be actual students. Wally asks former high school star Paul Blake (Scott Bakula) to try out. Dean Phillip Elias (Larry Miller) doesn't like the football program. Joining the team is rich boy Jarvis Edison (Jason Bateman), receiver Featherstone who can't hold on to the ball, Eric 'Samorai' Hansen and soccer player Lucy Draper (Kathy Ireland). Blake falls for Dr. Suzanne Carter (Harley Jane Kozak) who turns out to be his professor. Andre Krimm (Sinbad) is the celestrial mechanics professor and former football player who Blake gets to join the team. It's a silly little sports movie in the vein of Major League. It's got the zany cast of characters. It's got the evil dean. This one even has a girl on the team and Kathy Ireland makes for a very cute football player. Bakula is terrific as the old weary freshman. Rob Schneider is actually funny when he's doing commentary. It's very formulaic but that's what these movies are.

In the pantheon of football movies it's not the best, but not the worst by far. It's a decent comedy for the generation when it came out. The ensemble cast worked well together and anything with Kathy Ireland in it can't be all that bad. Sinbad also looked like someone who may have played football before going to teaching. 6/10

Necessary Roughness fmovies. Necessary Roughness is a fun movie that if it isn't taken too seriously can be very enjoyable. The first to worst Texas State team finds itself with a team of mostly "non-athletes" that came about after the school held open tryouts. The entire championship team from the year before had been suspended for violations. Scott Bakula plays a competent lead as a middle aged college athlete. Sinbad adds some fun to the story as another "elder athlete". Kathy Ireland, while no actress, does add some eye candy to the film. I also like this film in that this rag-tag team does not reach the heights of being #1 or making it to a championship game. The "big game" of this film is when Texas State plays the the #1 ranked college team. The film has plenty of laughs, a touch of drama and competent script writing and players. Watch it on a Sunday afternoon when nothing else is on.

You can read most details of the film in other, more complete reviews, pro and con. But I need to add an oddity.

The movie team, the Texas State University Fighting Armadillos, battles to a pounding against the Southwest Texas State Bobcats in one game. The point I want to make is that the REAL Southwest Texas State in San Marcos, TX changed its name in real life to Texas State University--San Marcos (the "--San Marcos" designation has also recently been dropped). So, in the movie, the problematic TSU university team in green and white plays its own real-life future alter ego, the real maroon-and-gold SWT Bobcats, complete with cheerleaders. The Armadillo mascot for Texas State in the movie is fictitious, but the Bobcats are real.

Since the movie was made in 1991 and the name change took place in 2003, the two movie opponent school names -- before anyone knew about the future name change -- eventually became the same university in reality.

Footnote: I graduated from Southwest Texas State in 1978 in journalism, with a minor in art. When the name change happened, the Alumni Association wrote and asked if I wanted a new diploma with the new college name, which I did opt for. So they sent me a new diploma with the new school name. I now have two diplomas from the same university (different names) with the same degree and minor.

According to WOAI-AM radio station in San Antonio, the total cost of the name change and resulting associated do-overs (stationary letterheads, repainting, etc) was $350,000, paid for by private donations.

This was a very funny sports (specifically American Football) movie where a college football team gets heavily sanctioned by such things as recruitment violations and has to get a new team from its student body and recruits its quarterback as a 34-year-old farmer in Scott Bakula. I will admit that there was hardly anything new in this formula and cliché-ridden film, and you will probably be able to figure out what happens in the final scene once it arrives, but you will have a fun time getting there. I absolutely loved Rob Schneider's role as the sportscaster. The coaches, players, and the lady professor were all great, and the movie was hilarious throughout. I actually attended the filming of the final scene at UNT. That was fun. You will not regret watching this movie.

*** out of ****