Glory Road

Times are changing.

I'm Ed Sullivan, and this is Broadway.

I have a dream.

I am the greatest!

By the content

of their character.

Hey, you guys are playing like girls.

Are you kiddin' me?

Hey, hey. Winnaker.

do you want me to get you a skirt?

I'll get you a skirt

if you keep playing like a girl.

There it is, there it is.

Come on, set it up.

Bring it down, bring it down.

Set it up! Set it up!

There it is. Pop the ball.

Pop it in there, pop it in there.

All right, good. There it is.

Congratulations. Coach.

Unh!

- That's good. That's perfect.

- OK, you do that.

Get your arm up. There it is.

That's good, that's perfect.

You go like this.

Shush.

All right. Here you go.

- My dad can slam-dunk it.

- Let me do it. Let me do it. Dad!

Great. All right. Mark, that's good.

That's good ball-handling.

Brent, you ready? This is a bounce pass.

Ohh!

It's all right. You'll live.

- It wasn't me. It was Dad.

- Traitor.

I'm not getting in trouble.

Catch it with your hands.

not your arms.

Hello.

This is Don.

We know you blew out your knee.

It's tough, giving up a dream, starting over.

but I'm glad to hear you're interested

in a coaching position. Mr., Haskins.

McCarty here says you're a winner.

I sure appreciate that.

Now, my style of coaching is one that...

You played for Mr.. Iba, so you know

how to reign in these unruly boys.

Sir. I do believe in discipline.

Now, my basketball philosophy is...

Mr., Haskins. You know, we're a small

school and we can't pay very much.

So we're gonna need you to live

in the men's dorm with your family

and keep those boys in line over there.

But your meals are free at the cafeteria.

And you got plenty of Texas sunshine.

So... how's it sound?

If that's what it takes

to coach Division I basketball, then...

ha-ha-ha, that's all right with me.

It's just a dusty old cow town.

Yeah, but if it's got a court with a roof

and uniforms that match.

then I wanna coach there.

I wanna play against the best.

I just wanted to thank you

for bringing me on.

Us Aggies gotta stick together.

- You've been here a few weeks.

- Yeah.

What you think?

It ain't much, but we can do something

with it. Here we go. Ready?

This is where you're gonna be living.

Hey. Coach.

Ross Moore, team trainer

and spiritual advisor.

We're gonna need some of that.

This is my wife. Mary.

Hi. Mrs, Haskins. Come on in here.

- Hate to put you out.

- Oh, no.

You ain't putting me out.

Don't think about it.

I'm thinking about leaving

this prize gator here for you.

- Makes a fine ceiling ornament.

- Cool.

You hear that? I made up my mind.

That little boy love that gator.

I'm gonna leave him there.

I've been checking the cupboard.

It's a little bare.

We got Baudoin outta Albuquerque.

20 points a game last year.

Got us a Missouri boy. Fast and tough

on defense - a kid named Armstrong.

David Palacio.

he's the top prep scorer in El Paso.

Waiting on junior-college transfers.

And Jerry in Housing says

on taco night, we get a real good crowd.

Taco night?

Taco night.

What's the budget for recruiting?

Ross says the budget's in the lights.

How can I have a winning team

with no budget for recruiting?

Now, listen. Coach. Football is king here.

And basketball sucks hind tit.

I'll shake down the boosters for a few more

bucks, get a couple more scholarships.

A few more bucks?

I gotta go find players. How can I recruit

with one or two scholarships?

Do you forget where you come from, Don?

Coaching high school girls.

Take a look around you.

This ain't Kansas. Duke. Kentucky.

We're a poor school that counts

every penny to pay for a river rat's dream

of a college education.

We're lucky to put a decent team

on the court.

Well, decent don't cut it with me.

Duke's where you wanna go.

Hey, how you doing?

Don Haskins. Texas Western.

How you doing? Don Haskins.

- See anyone you like?

- What about number three over there?

Jason Stevens out of Chicago.

18 points a game.

Hasn't signed a letter of intent yet.

Jason!

Beating a dead horse there, Don.

- Jason, Don Haskins. Texas Western.

- Western Union?

Texas Western, down in El Paso.

After the game. I'd like to talk to you

about playing for me.

Play for you at Texas Western?

Thanks. Coach, but I'm partial to winning.

How about that big ol' tall boy?

Made All-Jayhawk Conference last year.

Gonna sign with Kansas.

You wanna talk to Bobby Joe Hill?

Son, you can't win playing n*gger ball.

Sure, they can jump, but they can't lead.

Can't handle the pressure.

Don't have enough intelligence.

That boy in particular.

No-account smart-mouth.

Just tell me where I can find him.

Excuse me. I'm the basketball coach

down at Texas Western.

- I'd like to talk to you about playing there.

- No, thanks.

I'm done playing this game.

They hardly put me on the floor tonight.

- I'm offering a full scholarship.

- Uh-huh.

You sign me up like your token Negro.

bury me at the end of the bench.

I'd rather hang it up. Do something else.

Be the next Smokey Robinson.

I might even run for president.

You got a real talent, son.

Why throw it away?

I'll tell you why. Ever since I was a kid. I

only loved one thing - that was playing ball.

Do you understand what that's like.

to have that ball in your hand?

It's like making sweet music

with your game.

Only thing is.

you don't wanna hear the song.

You talk a good game. Hill.

I didn't come here to find a player

I could sit on the bench.

I intend to start you -

start NCAA Division One ball.

What is it with you, mister?

I've accepted it. What are you smoking?

I ain't smoking nothing, son.

Now, you just told me about a big old

dream you have. I can let you play.

I can help you make your dream come true

faster than a twister'll take your socks off.

You talk funny.

So do you.

You gonna let a black player play

from the get-go?

I don't see color. I see quick.

I see skill, and that's what you have.

And that's what I'm putting on the court.

So, what is this team, anyway?

All right, that New York recruiter.

Hilton White.

He's got three boys up there now.

They're just playground kids.

He said they could play with anybody.

Every one of these players

you're looking at is colored, Don.

How many are you recruiting?

We need seven players on this team

who can put it in the hole and rebound.

Now, if they're colored, well, fine.

Well, then now. Coach.

let me try to paint you a little picture.

There are no coloreds playing

Division One basketball in the South.

Not in the SEC, not in the ACC

and not in the SWC.

But you go and put seven of 'em

on our team.

Am I losing my hearing?

Do I need a darn hearing aid?

No. Ross. I intend to win.

Shoot. You carrying on like Negroes

gonna be the future of basketball.

Could you imagine that?

There are rules. Unwritten rules.

You play one at home, two on the road

and three if you're losing.

Lord have mercy. Loadin' up

on Negroes, that just ain't done.

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