I’ve never been a big “sports person” in terms of what I like to watch on TV. A story-driven fictional drama is far more compelling to me than the real-life strategy and athleticism displayed on a football field. When I do watch a game, I find myself wanting to know who these players are — not just as athletes, but people. What’s their story? That’s why the Emmy-winning HBO docuseries Hard Knocks has kickstarted my football fan status.
Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (10 p.m. Tuesdays, HBO), the series’ 12th installment, takes viewers behind the scenes as the Florida team prepares for the upcoming season. It’s a football fan’s fantasy — beautiful, up-close action shots from preseason games; unprecedented access to the players in camp, at the team’s living quarters and with their families; and a ridiculously quick turnaround of footage. Episodes air days after the action was shot, meaning you can catch a preseason game on Friday — like when the Bengals played the Bucs Aug. 11 at Paul Brown Stadium — then watch it play out on Hard Knocks the following Tuesday.
The show is also consistently entertaining to a general audience, thanks to a great balance between on-field action and a look at the personal lives and backstories of the players and coaching staff. We explore the other roles they play as husbands, fathers and even Game of Thronesfans. These athletes are so larger than life that to see them do anything average, like visiting their humble childhood home, putting their kids to bed or going lobster harpooning (OK, maybe not totally average), is so satisfying.
There’s a buzzing excitement when the season begins: rookies getting their first brush with NFL fame, coaches strategizing for a more successful season, undrafted players on the “roster bubble,” eager to earn an official spot on the team. But not everyone’s going to make it — there will be cuts and injuries that take players out of the game. The stakes get higher with each passing episode — and there are only five total.
Moving from the NFL to a little-known community college, Last Chance U (Netflix) offers a different kind of sports docuseries narrative. East Mississippi Community College is essentially a final shot for student athletes with potential who have lost out on major opportunities due to their grades or conduct. Here, players get to train at one of the most successful under-the-radar athletic programs in the country and hopefully transfer to a Division One school. EMCC transfers more than 20 grads a year into four-year universities on scholarships, has won three national championships and boasts nine former players now in the NFL.
The man behind it all, coach Buddy Stephens, is the classic Southern Christian man of a certain age who believes young people are coddled and too distracted to understand anything but “direct” — volatile — orders. He cusses at his staff, fights referees and snarls at injured, concussed players to get back on the field.
In a series about redemption, this season represents somewhat of a second chance for Stephens as well. He’s dealing with fallout from his last football season —which ended in a mid-game brawl that disqualified the winning team from playoffs — as well as from the first season of the show, which left many viewers with a sour impression of the coach. At first he attempts to be more self-aware, by doing push-ups every time he curses on the field — a sort of Christian hypocrisy of eliminating a few cuss words when really he needs to reevaluate the way he speaks to people. As one player points out, Stephens is a great coach, but he fails to relate to the players.
Sometimes the only person to help them in this respect is team academic advisor Brittany Wagner. She’s tasked with keeping these guys on track to graduate and does so with motivation and compassion. Her impact on these students is incredible — they adore her — but without reciprocal support from the athletic side, Wagner comes to a professional crossroads this season.
Hard Knocks and Last Chance U both offer compelling insights into the American phenomenon that is football.
CONTACT JAC KERN: @jackern
This article appears in Aug 16-23, 2017.