When The Game Stands Tall — Part II

By: Clement Yu, Wednesday, August 27th, 2014 01:28 am PST
Filed under: Corkboard

Done, Joe! I’ve corrected the original posting which was inadvertently attributed to Irvin.

Good to know you enjoyed the movie! Gerald Jose also emailed me to promote the film earlier but I waited to respond until I saw it myself. Well, I have and noticed the movie has many “Hollywood” in it. The Lasallian community here (as you recall, I reside walking distance from the school and all my four sons are Lasallians) understand that some events were altered and/or dramatized to reinforce the message on what the DLS football program in particular and Lasallian education in general is all about. If you really want to gain insight, read the eponymous book by Neil Hayes. As good as the movie is, the book is better.

Having studied in two campuses back home (Taft and Green Hills), I know there are nuanced differences in the different Lasallian schools despite maintaining the core Lasallian values. Ditto in the USA. There are different mottos, cheers and even school colors (Sacred Heart Prep in SF carry blue!). The battle cry “animo” and catchphrase “Christian Gentlemen” do not mean anything in the Concord campus. Instead my sons at the DLS Concord became part of a brotherhood quite distinct from even fellow Christian Brother institutions in the USA. A dedicated faculty that fosters a culture of brotherly love — trite as it may sound — is a big reason for this.Coach Lad is quoted at the end of the book: “There is only one word to describe the reason for our success — mystery. The spirit that exists at DLS High is mysterious. You can’t define, box it or sell it. You just allow it in, with all respect and humility. Our job is to allow the spirit to work within us to change our small corner of the world — one play at a time,one relationship at a time, one love at a time, one child at a time — and when it’s all said and done you’ll understand that it begins with you.”

Perhaps my only criticism of the movie is that it does not include our concluding prayer: St. John Baptiste de la Salle, pray for us! Live Jesus in our hearts, forvever! It is the one prayer that Lasallians all over the world affirm and it would have been neat, if not powerful, to hear Lasallians at the movie theaters say aloud the prayer that unites all of us.

BTW, the Spartans are playing vs Jesuits (Carmichael) on Friday 8/29 at Cal’s Memorial Stadium. It was originally set for the new Levi’s Stadium but turf issues forced the event to be moved. The Spartans get another chance at Levi’s on Oct. 11 vs James Logan (Union City). If you really want to feel the true Spartan vibes, though, watch them at their home turf (Owens Field). The Spartans are not dominant anymore as the teams of yesteryears (especially the early 2000s) and Coach Lad has relinquished his post at the start of 2013. But Friday home games remain a treat at Owens Field — with or without my company, haha!