Pat O'Brien tries to recreate a Knute Rockne type role in this biopic of Coach Frank Cavanaugh. Unfortunately, the movie seems like a rushed RKO World War II propaganda film and never really develops enough detail in the various scenes of his...
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Pat O'Brien tries to recreate a Knute Rockne type role in this biopic of Coach Frank Cavanaugh. Unfortunately, the movie seems like a rushed RKO World War II propaganda film and never really develops enough detail in the various scenes of his life. Ruth Warrick puts in a nice performance, and O'Brien is fine in his Irish-American manner, but the script and even the sloppy editing of the football footage lets the film down. It seems more intent on showing scenes from every college that Cavanaugh coached at than it does on establishing a persona for its main protagonist.

It is also a little much to have the 40 plus year old O'Brien playing the character as a college star at Dartmouth, he looks far too old and doughy to be convincing. The scenes of Cavanaugh's Great War heroism are also too brief.