I think a big part of our attraction to sport movies are the stories contained within the sports.
If I stayed a football player, my career would have been over 20 years ago. As it is, my knees are shot. I found I got the same good feeling in acting that I had in sports, but I found I could have a more profound impact on people.
As an example, one of the schools I have been studying is too small to compete effectively in most sports, but participates with vigor each year in the state music contests.
I grew up in New Jersey and my father was a golf pro, so I was groomed for sports, but I wasn’t very good, so my interests lay elsewhere.
Several professional athletes have wrongly taught many young Americans by example that the only way to succeed in sports is to take steroids.
I never got into sports at all until I was in my early 20s, after my music career got going.