Gridiron Gang Quotes

[from trailer]

Sean Porter: Everybody listen up. The Gridiron is a football field. On the Gridiron, we do it my way, not your way. Your way got you here. Whatever gang you claim, whatever hood you're from, this is your hood now.

Malcolm Moore: Man, that kid's always smiling!

[laughing at Bugs]

Sean Porter: Yeah... but I wonder if he was laughing when he stabbed that old lady for her purse?

John Stevens: I'm back, nigger!

[later, after Willie tackles John and scores touchdown]

Willie Weathers: You iight... nigga?

Malcolm Moore: You know you're an idiot, right?

Sean Porter: I'm making progress. I used to be an asshole.

[first title card]

Title Card: There are over 120,000 juveniles incarcerated in detention centers across the United States... Upon release 75% will either return to prison or die on the street,,, What follows is based on the TRUE STORY of Camp Kilpatrick and the people there who tried to make a difference...

Roger Weathers: [Sean whacks Roger with a rolled up magazine] Mr. Porter?

Sean Porter: Getting beat in the middle of the night, how'd you like it Roger?

[Hits him again]

Sean Porter: You like that?

Roger Weathers: What are you hittin me for?

Sean Porter: What you hit Kelvin Owens for?

Roger Weathers: He dissed my hood!

Sean Porter: And now he's up there sleeping, and you're stuck in here! So, what does that make you?

[Hits him again]

Roger Weathers: Hey man, can you do that?

Roger Weathers: Can I do what?

Sean Porter: Be smackin me and shit!

Roger Weathers: [Thinks for a moment, hits him once more] I guess I can!

Roger Weathers: Shit, man!

Junior Palaita: I'll play.

Sean Porter: I can't use you Junior.

Junior Palaita: Why not?

Sean Porter: Because you have no discipline. You've been trying to start fights every time I turn my back.

Junior Palaita: You' ain't gonna give me a chance?

Sean Porter: You've had plenty of chances.

Anthony: Don't do this, please! I got two little boys at home!

Willie Weathers: For my dead homie!

Anthony: No, don't do this!

[Willie shoots and misses him]

Willie Weathers: Oh, shit! Damn!

Sean Porter: Listen, Paul, we convince a kid to stop gang banging, all we do is create a void. And unless we fill that void with something better, we're gonna lose 'em.

Sean Porter: According to the teaching staff, the kids here have trouble being punctual, responding to authority, being a member of a team, and accepting criticism. What one activity can improve 'em on all these areas?

Paul Higa: You want to start a football team?

Sean Porter: Exactly.

Paul Higa: Sean, look at them. Our who system's designed to prevent them from making contact.

Sean Porter: Our whole system right now is a joke.

Ted Dexter: Malcolm, you're not buying into this, are you?

Malcolm Moore: Seventy-five percent of our kids end up back in jail. How much worse could it be?

Ted Dexter: Well, who are they gonna play against?

Sean Porter: I'll find 'em high school teams to play.

Ted Dexter: Wait a minute, you wanna take 'em out of camp? You really think you can trust these kids?

Sean Porter: Not now, no. But if they were a football team...

Ted Dexter: Oh, c'mon Sean. It's impossible.

Sean Porter: Then lets try the impossible, because the possible just ain't working.

Sean Porter: Paul, we've got to give these kids a target and we've gotta fill that void.

Sean Porter: You played football, didn't you?

Paul Higa: Defensive end. Second Team All League.

Paul Higa: Alright. we'll give it a try. But your neck is way out on this.

Kelvin Owens: What you looking at me foul like that for?

[Kelvin sees Willie's tattoo]

Kelvin Owens: I know you. You a God damn 88.

Willie Weathers: Yeah, that's right.

Kelvin Owens: You lucky we up in here. 'Cause on the outs you'd be dead.

Willie Weathers: I'll kill you right here, right now.

Miguel Perez: Is practice gonna be hard?

Sean Porter: It's a lot harder than five homeboys beatin' up a security guard, Perez.

Miguel Perez: Then I'm in.

Leon Hayes: Yo, I'll play quarterback.

Sean Porter: You got any experience, Leon?

Leon Hayes: Man, I got so much experience I could give some away and still have more than I could use.

Sean Porter: How 'bout you, Owens? You played defensive back, didn't you? For Washington High?

[Kelvin gives Coach Porter the silent treatment]

Sean Porter: You wanna check your calendar and get back to me? Or maybe you got another liquor store to rob.

Kelvin Owens: Yeah, I'll play.

Bug Wendal: I got experience. I played for like three years.

Sean Porter: What position did you play?

Bug Wendal: Out to the side.

Sean Porter: Was that out to the side on offense or defense?

Bug Wendal: If the ball's thrown from... Man, I don't know what I'm talkin' 'bout.

Sean Porter: Alright, Bug. How about you be water boy?

Bug Wendal: Cool. Alright.

Donald Madlock: Yo, Mr. Porter, can I play?

Sean Porter: You're getting out in a week, Medlock.

Donald Madlock: I want to stay in.

Sean Porter: You want to stay in jail?

Donald Madlock: Yeah, man. South Central in summertime gets hot. Gets crazy. People start shootin' each other and stuff.

Sean Porter: I'll talk to your case worker.

Sean Porter: You got a pass, Junior?

Junior Palaita: I had a phone call.

Sean Porter: From who?

Sean Porter: It's my boy's birthday, man. He's two years old. He's two years old and I missed it.

[Junior hits the blocking bag hard]

Junior Palaita: I wanna be a Mustang, Coach.

Sean Porter: Why should I trust you?

Junior Palaita: 'Cause I ain't gonna mess up.

Junior Palaita: That's what you told the judge the last time you got out.

Junior Palaita: No more! I'm tired out being a loser, man! Making a mess of everything. Coach, I want to show people I can play. I can do something with my life. I just want to make my son proud.

Sean Porter: You see this line, Willie? You knock me past this line, you'll have my respect.

Willie Weathers: What if I don't wanna?

Sean Porter: Then everybody will think you're a chicken shit.

Malcolm Moore: You know you're an idiot, right?

Sean Porter: Well, I'm making progress. 'Cause I use to be an asshole.

[the Mustang players are writing letters home]

Kenny Bates: I'm glad to hear that things are getting better, Mom. Maybe when I get out we can live together again. Football is great. And I'm good at it now.

Donald Madlock: I love sackin' the quarterback! Sometimes I can't even believe it's legal.

Leon Hayes: Throwing TDs don't pay as much as slingin' rocks. But damn, it feel good.

Kelvin Owens: Grandma, you'd be proud of me. I'm stayin' outta trouble. I don't have enemies here anymore.

Bug Wendal: We done won seven in a row now. I can't remember the exact number of touchdowns I scored. I think about 60.

Willie Weathers: Dear Danyelle, I wish you would write back to me. I'm different than I was. I think you would like me again if you saw me play football.

CIF Official: You see, our problem is, while you didn't cause the shooting, you couldn't prevent it either.

Ted Dexter: What if we could? What if we could guarantee it won't happen again?

Kenny Bates' Mom: Kenny!

Kenny Bates: Mom!

Kenny Bates' Mom: I made it!

Sean Porter: Feel like catching the ball, Bates?

Kenny Bates: Coach, the deep pass always goes to Perez.

Sean Porter: Everybody knows that, including Barrington.

Kenny Bates: Coach, I don't wanna...

Sean Porter: Hey, it's only a game, Kenny. You just get out there and give it your best shot. Catch the ball.

Frank Torrance: Most of our starters have been in this program for three years. You have four weeks to prepare your team. Do you really want to go up against those kind of odds?

Sean Porter: I'll bet you $100 we win.

Frank Torrance: We're a Christian school, we don't gamble.

Malcolm Moore: Mr. Torrance, let me ask you, you a Christian, right?

Frank Torrance: Yeah.

Malcolm Moore: Now, I'm not that familiar with the exact words, but didn't Jesus say something like, Be merciful, just as your Father's merciful. Don't pass judgement and you won't be judged?

Frank Torrance: It's the book of Luke.

Malcolm Moore: Give and it'll be given in good measure. For whatever measure you deal out to others, it'll be dealt to you in return.

Frank Torrance: You're not too familiar with it, huh?

Sean Porter: I didn't know you were religious.

Malcolm Moore: I ain't religious, but we need all the help we can get for this program. Wouldn't hurt for you to pray some yourself.

Willie Weathers: I don't know what's happening to me, man.

Sean Porter: I do. You're not the loser you were when you first go here, Willie. You're just not use to being a winner.

Willie Weathers: My father said I was a waste of his time and his money.

Sean Porter: Your father was a loser, Willie. My old man was the same way. He spent so much time telling me I was no good, telling me I was nothing. I believed him.

Willie Weathers: That why yo so pissed off all the time?

[Coach Porter laughs]

Sean Porter: Yeah, that's probably got something to do with it.

Sean Porter: I know how you feel, Willie. You get to the point where you expect to screw up. You expect to fail. If we wanna win, we gotta let 'em go. Forgive 'em and move on.

Willie Weathers: Forgive 'em?

Sean Porter: Otherwise we give 'em too much power over us. And they don't deserve it.

Willie Weathers: Well, how long it take you to forgive your dad?

[Coach Porter thinks about it for some time]

Sean Porter: Until just now.