Woodlawn Page #6

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would make my boys weak.

Next thing you know,

I'm the first one walking down the aisle,

crying like a child,

my whole team behind me.

My whole team.

How does that happen?

You gotta see it with your own eyes.

Unbelievable.

I'm a changed man...

and I'm sorry.

Fine.

I will take it.

Ha-ha-ha-ha!

I'm glad that's over.

We are gonna do camp

a little different this year.

Yeah, just a little bit different.

You wanna do something wild,

something truly rebellious?

I like that.

I want you to do something

that's never been done before.

At least, not to my knowledge.

Prepare yourself,

you know it's a must

Gotta have a friend in Jesus

So you know that...

Wouldn't be very Christian if you stole

my playbook now, Tandy, would it?

Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!

No, it would not.

You know, I've always wanted

two things professionally:

to win a championship,

and to coach a truly great player.

You've done both, so which is better?

Rings collect dust.

That right there, that lasts forever.

Two rivals, Banks and Woodlawn,

had their fall camp together.

Both credit a spiritual

experience as the cause

for the public show of unity.

The trouble is they can't

both enter the playoffs

because they're in the same district.

Many say this rule

is unfortunate, unfair,

and should change.

Mom, I got it.

Hello, son.

I'm not leaving here until

you decide to come to Alabama.

Excuse me.

Momma!

Dear Lord, we thank you for this food

and for your provisions.

Strengthen us with it

so that we might serve you.

Amen.

And may I add, God in heaven,

help Tony see the light, Amen.

I do love corn.

Not me!

You don't like nothing!

Tony.

We all do what we do in life.

Go our different ways.

The idea of molding men,

well, that means a lot to me.

And I want you to know

that I'm here to help

no matter what choice you make.

And I think you can feel that.

Now, your momma...

showed me this.

Said it was taped to a brick

thrown into this house.

At my little brother.

He didn't do nothing.

That was all because of me.

Tony, when I was coming up here,

I passed a football field full of kids.

I saw a young black boy wearin'

number 22, his head held high.

That's also because of you.

And I wanna say something, son.

You know the difference

between you and these people?

They're cowards, and you ain't.

Here comes the senior tailback

in his rst game of the year.

Of course, expectations are high.

Dozens of college scouts

and coaches are here watching.

And, folks, the atmosphere is electric.

They all want to see

what this kid can do.

Do you feel unstoppable when you run?

No, I just wanna give Jesus Christ

all the glory for giving us

another victory.

What do you think about Jeff Rutledge?

Best QB in the state.

Fifteen second leeway, Alabama

with one time out remaining

Rutledge on a roll.

Looks down the middle, and it is...

Caught!

Touchdown!

So, Jeff, what do you think

of Touchdown Tony?

I think Tony Nathan's the best

running back in the country.

You've got a big game next week.

What do you say to those calling

it Nathan vs. Rutledge?

Just two great teams.

Gonna be a great game.

Good luck, Tony.

Thank you.

Hey, what paper'd you say you're with?

"Sports Illustrated."

The question, what happens

when an unstoppable force

meets an immoveable object?

We're gonna nd out on Friday.

This is the game

we've all been waiting for.

The top two teams in the state

facing off in a clash of titans.

Both are undefeated.

Both have one of the most highly

ranked athletes in the nation.

And because of the expected crowds,

the game has been moved to the heart

of Birmingham:
Legion Field.

It's Nathan vs. Rutledge.

Get those knees up.

You spying out the battlefield

like me, huh?

How many people you think?

I don't know.

Heard it could be close to 20,000.

Ain't never seen that

many people in my life.

You see the "Sports Illustrated"?

Nah, man.

"Faces in the Crowd," you're in there.

I'm sure the Bear came and saw

you, gave you the ring speech.

Yeah.

"You ain't gonna get one over there."

Yeah, he did.

You decided?

Man, I don't even know.

I've never made this big

of a decision before in my life.

Me too.

Well, go where you feel like you

can make the most difference.

That's what I'm gonna do.

It's crazy, all these

people coming to see us.

What's so special about us?

We're a symbol.

We give them hope.

I ain't seen you in school.

I got suspended.

Why?

Because I wanted to.

Ain't nobody gonna

bus me to that prison.

That's the only way

I saw out, that's all.

Who's been doing this to you?

You need to leave.

Right now, please.

Go.

Touchdown Tony Nathan.

What you doing here,

digging in the trash?

Tony!

That might be your daughter,

but that's the woman I love.

Did you actually read through this?

Come on.

Parents are calling it

abrasive and overreaching.

I didn't force anyone to do anything.

You know what this is.

It's retribution.

Yes, I know, but I am

compelled to deal with it.

Look at the changes to these boys, Owen.

It is amazing to see.

It is.

But this is a public high school.

Mr. Whitehurst.

And you are?

I'm Linda, sir.

I'm a teacher.

And what is this?

It's a prayer meeting.

Prayer meeting?

The kids started it themselves Friday night

and it just hasn't stopped.

God, thank you for the change

that you've brought upon this city.

Thank you for the change that

you've brought upon this school.

Thank you for the change that

you have brought upon my life.

Are you leading this?

No, sir.

I was an atheist last week.

The kids, they're leading me.

It's spreading all over the school.

There's even a rally

tonight at Legion Field

if you want to come.

Coach is setting it up.

I just wanna thank Coach Gerelds

and his team for putting this together.

Thank you, Coach.

Would you look at this?

I mean, take a look around.

Can you believe it?

This is what happens when God shows up.

Now, a couple years back,

I went to this thing called

"The Explo '72" in Dallas.

I joined a hundred thousand

other people just like us.

Up until that point in my life,

I guess I kinda felt insignificant.

I felt like my life doesn't matter.

Then the last night of the week,

there in the big Cotton Bowl,

they shut off the lights.

And in that darkness,

Reverend Graham lit a candle.

A single candle.

I was standing in the very

back of the stadium,

but I could see that light.

And I realized that my

life is not insignicant.

My life matters.

One light became two and two became ten

and ten became a hundred thousand.

Well, people in Dallas started

calling the re department

and the police department,

saying,

"The Cotton Bowl's on fire!"

Well, you know what?

They were right.

A hundred thousand candles

burning as one.

"Time Magazine" said

that the Jesus revolution...

that's what they called us...

has a symbol.

This is our symbol.

Because there is one way.

We're not gathered here united tonight

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