Playmakers Explained

Genre:	Drama
Creator:	John Eisendrath
Music:	Lou Natale
Country:	United States
Language:	English
Num Seasons:	1
Num Episodes:	11
Producer:	Jamie Paul Rock
Location:	Toronto
Cinematography:	John Berrie
Runtime:	43–47 minutes
Channel:	ESPN

Playmakers is an American drama television series created by John Eisendrath that aired on ESPN from August 26 to November 11, 2003. It depicts the lives of the Cougars, a fictional professional football team playing in an unidentified city. The show stars Tony Denison, Omar Gooding, Russell Hornsby, Jason Matthew Smith, Marcello Thedford, and Christopher Wiehl. The show, which ran eleven episodes, was the first original drama series created by ESPN. Although the ratings were very high for ESPN - Playmakers was the highest-rated show on the network other than its Sunday night NFL and Saturday college football games - ESPN eventually canceled the series under pressure from the National Football League, who disliked the portrayal of the negative aspects of its players' lives off the field.^[1]

Style

The show follows the lives of various members of an ensemble cast who portray the players and personnel on a fictional American football team, the Cougars, in a fictional league (referred to in the series as "The League"^[2]) during the regular season.

Many of these segments are prefaced by an internal monologue in the format of a character narrating in his head.

Cast and characters

Main

• Tony Denison as Coach Mike George - The head coach in his ninth season with the team.
• Omar Gooding as Demetrius Harris, #39 - A rookie running back from Colorado.
• Russell Hornsby as Leon Taylor, #33 - A ninth year running back from USC.
• Jason Matthew Smith as Eric Olczyk, #54 - A fifth year middle linebacker from Penn State.
• Marcello Thedford as Kelvin "The Buffalo" James, #60 - A fourth year offensive tackle from Oklahoma State.
• Christopher Wiehl as Derek McConnell, #11 - A fourth year quarterback from Louisville.

Recurring

• Stephen Bogaert - Phil Chambers, Team Equipment Manager
• Bruce Gray - Gene Wilbanks, the team's owner
• Phillip Jarrett - Coach Rudman, Defensive Coordinator and close friend of Coach George
• Karen LeBlanc - Robin Taylor, Leon's wife
• Thea Andrews - Samantha Lovett, reporter who presumably shows a love interest for Leon Taylor.
• Dan Petronijevic - Thad Guerwicz, a wide receiver who is a closeted gay man
• Kevin Jubinville - Dr. Gatewood, The team Physician
• Sasha Roiz - Stephen Lyles, Assistant Head Coach and Offensive Coordinator
• Gabriel Hogan - Guard Dog Fredericks
• Tacquira LaTouche - Herself
• Frank Chiesurin - David, Guerwictz's boyfriend
• Laura Jordan - August, Guerwictz's girlfriend and later fiancé to publicly cover up his homosexuality
• K. C. Collins - Ron Martin, a rookie Wide Receiver for the Cougars.

Roster

Production

Filming took place in Toronto from May to October 2003. Game scenes were filmed at the SkyDome, with Canadian Football League players serving as background actors or stunt doubles.^[3]

DVD

The only season of Playmakers was released on DVD by ESPN Home Video in 2004.

Awards

• Won AFI TV Award, Top TV Series (2003)
• Won GLAAD Media Award, Outstanding Drama Series (2004)
• Nominated CSC Award, Best Cinematography in TV Series (2004)
• Nominated DGC Craft Award, Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing - Television Series (2004)

See also

• List of American football films

Notes and References

1. News: PRO FOOTBALL; Citing N.F.L., ESPN Cancels 'Playmakers'. Richard. Sandomir. New York Times. February 5, 2004. July 24, 2012.
2. http://mghelmets.com/movies.html Movie/TV helmets
3. Web site: 'We were telling the truth': The rise and demise of ESPN's controversial hit series, 'Playmakers'. Vannini. Chris. The Athletic. The New York Times Company. August 4, 2023. https://archive.today/20240524222346/https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/4737293/2023/08/04/nfl-espn-playmakers-tv-show/. subscription. May 24, 2024. September 23, 2024.