Before the Netflix documentary series Last Chance U reportedly makes its transition from JUCO football to basketball next year viewers are treated to what could be viewed as the best of the series’ with its coverage of Laney College’s 2019 season.
The Oakland-based Laney surprised a lot of people last year by winning the California State Football Championship. Yet, they returned just 22 players from that team, as often is the case with JUCO programs filled with kids looking to earn their way out and onto a Division II or a coveted Division I roster. While some big egos are still on display, and there’s more expletives than a Tarantino film, there’s also a clear difference between the coaching style of John Beam and those before him. The featured players also seem easier to root for, largely as a result of the even more difficult challenges they battle on a daily basis while trying to achieve their dreams.
Unlike other seasons, the players that go to Laney aren’t being given free housing, or even food. Most grapple with the difficulties of maintaining a full class schedule, and working a job to support themselves, on top of the time requirements demanded by football. The gentrification of Oakland has driven the cost of living through the roof forcing many families that used to call the city home to move further away. This causes for long commutes and tough choices for many of the players. It’s a theme that continues throughout Last Chance U Season 5, and offers an element not seen before.
While to an extent the show is at the mercy of whatever team they choose to follow that season in terms of the overall narrative, Last Chance U creator, Greg Whiteley, did a phenomenal job selecting the players who are chosen to be the focus. While the series documents all of the twists and turns that come with the entirety of the team’s season, and other players may get ample screen time as a result of that, what sets the show apart are the stories that accompany a few highlighted young men.
The first shots of the new season follow Offensive Lineman Nu’u Taugavau as he and his wife get their two children ready for the day. Being young parents, both enrolled in school, each day seems to be a scheduling struggle. Nu’u is clearly determined to be a great father to his children, but also realizes that football gives him the best chance to get an education and provide for them. He comes across as a gentle giant, soft-spoken at home and in the classroom, but full of colorful descriptions of what he’s prepared to do to the man that lines up across from him on the field.
R.J. Stern is a Wide Receiver in his third year with the team due to injuries forcing him to redshirt during their Championship run the year before. He’s an explosive talent but is often chastised for his route running which leaves him underutilized and at odds with Coach Beam. The research team clearly did their due diligence in targeting R.J. because the backstory of his living situation which is revealed in Episode 3, and his family history (which sadly extends beyond simply being the grandson of science fiction writer Eleanor Zimmer Bradley who penned The Mists of Avalon), is overwhelming and something you weren’t expecting to hear.
The most likely of the featured players to earn a DI scholarship offer is Cornerback Rejzohn Wright, whose brother Nahshon left Laney to attend Oregon State after the prior season. Rejzohn clearly has the most natural talent of the bunch, and also the most offers (six, which he lets opposing WRs know frequently). While he may appear arrogant on the field, he makes a few spectacular plays which showcase why he feels he backs that up. Outside of the game, both him and his brother have dealt with the tragic passing of their father, and he’s as determined as anyone to pursue his football dreams, which would make his two-hour daily commute to Oakland worth it.
Dior Walker-Scott is an undersized WR first, but seemingly the most versatile player on the team, called upon to do whatever necessary to help the team compete. He also has the most compelling arc, which is set up as you see him drive home from a game only to learn that he’s sleeping in his car close to work each night. Due to an estranged relationship with his father, which you see directly impacts his mental health, he’s determined to be on his own and not lean on anyone for support saying, “I hate feeling weak, I felt weak for so long.” If there has ever been a guy that’s impossible to root against, it has to be him.
The second episode opens with a lot of background on Coach Beam who is entering his 40th season coaching, and highlights why he’s so well respected in the community. Unlike coaches from prior seasons, you get the sense that he does sincerely care about his players, even when he’s being a hard ass. His personality doesn’t detract from his players, and he’s content to let them be the stars of the show which is a refreshing change. He’s a legend in the world of Oakland football, but each season comes with a new set of challenges, and Laney came face to face with them becoming shockingly shorthanded at QB like something out of Any Given Sunday. Their collective handling of that misfortune drives the first half of the season.
As fans have been deprived of all sports for so long, Last Chance U came at the perfect time, and the football doesn’t disappoint. The heart of this series though has always been trying to comprehend the overwhelming odds and adversity that these kids have faced not only now, on the field, but their entire lives, as we learn about them through well-crafted interviews and candid moments. Certainly, they often get in their own way, and make poor choices, but its hard to imagine what decisions most viewers would make in their shoes, unless they have lived it themselves. The team from Laney College is going to have to battle every step of the way the second half of the season in order to make the playoffs, but what else is new for these guys?
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