A review: Last Chance U (Netflix)

This post contains no spoilers.

Even as the football season is rapidly approaching, I feel myself starved for football content during the late summer months.  Last Friday, Netflix released season 2 of its original documentary series “Last Chance U.”  This series chronicles the trials and tribulations of the team that occupies one of the dustiest corners of college football – East Mississippi Community College.  The team on the field is dominant, and won the 2011, 2013, and 2014 NJCAA national titles, boasting a 12-0 records in all three seasons.  The docu-series picks up on the eve of the 2015 season (Season 1) and continues with the 2016 season (Season 2).  

East Mississippi Community College takes on students who didn’t meet NCAA minimum qualifications out of high school, or have been asked to transfer/have been expelled from other Division 1 programs.  Some of these players, like ex-Wolverine Brian Cole, are relatively well known.  (Cole makes a cameo appearance in season 2 of the show).  These players enroll, play, and graduate in an attempt to either repair their images or their grades to earn a spot on a Division 1 roster.      

The show’s production is very similar to HBO’s Hard Knocks.  There are interviews with players, coaches, and support staff.  Although the cast of characters is relatively small, there is more than enough diversity of opinion to hold the audience’s interest.  

Whether the producers of the show set out to cast Head Coach Buddy Stephens as the antagonist from the outset is unclear, but he seemingly fills that role with glee.  Stephens is almost a walking stereotype.  The bombastic coach’s R-rated language consistently pushes the audience to consider where it should draw the line between “tough-love” or “old-school” coaching and bullying.  The rest of the staff gets plenty of camera time as well, and some position coaches, like former West Virginia Mountaineer quarterback Clint Trickett (QB coach), and former NFL-er Davern Williams (D-line coach) really shine in the spotlight.

Any review of this show would be incomplete without mentioning Brittany Wagner, who serves as academic advisor to the football team.  She is unquestionably the star of the first two seasons of the show.  She is often seems as a lone adult in the room when trying to navigate players through classes, practices, and recruitment.  Her tasks range from mundane, like reminding players to bring paper to class, to vital, like talking to recruiters about a player’s character.  It becomes clear to the audience that the Wagner’s empathy and work ethic help make this whole system run.  Her office is consistently filled with players looking for guidance or simply a place to hang out.  

So, what does this have to do with Michigan?  Honestly, not much.  Michigan rarely (if ever?) accepts JuCo transfers, and the only former Wolverine was not highlighted in the show.  That said, it provides and exclusive behind-the-scenes look at an uncommon path that some college football players take in pursuit of their goal.  None of these players or coaches, outside of (maybe) Stephens, truly wants to be at EMCC, but they all need it.  

The true power of “Last Chance U” doesn’t lie in its ability to tell a football story.  Much like great science fiction isn’t about science, great football stories aren’t about football.  This show is about the people and their stories.   The series forces its audience to consider many issues that face America today:  Sports, education, poverty, ethics, race, culture, and more.  This series is absolutely worth a watch for any college football fan because it lies at an intersection of many issues in our culture today.  Check it out on Netflix, but maybe save it until after the kids have gone to sleep due to the language.  

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