Several players from different backgrounds try to cope with the pressures of playing football at a major university. Each deals with the pressure differently, some turn to drinking, others to drugs, and some to studying.

When a plane crash claims the lives of members of the Marshall University football team and some of its fans, the team’s new coach (McConaughey) and his surviving players try to keep the football program alive.

The Bakers, a family of 12, move from small-town Illinois to the big city after Tom Baker (Martin) gets his dream job to coach his alma mater’s football team. Meanwhile, his wife (Hunt) also gets her dream of getting her book published. While she’s away promoting the book, Tom has a hard time keeping the house in order while at the same time coaching his football team, as the once happy family starts falling apart.