Go Tigers!

2001 Documentary

A first-hand account of young athletes in the high school football-obsessed town of Massillon, OH, this first feature by director Kenneth A. Carlson was shot on high-definition video over the course of the 1999 football season of the Massillon Tigers. At the beginning of the season, the team is nursing a "four-and-six nightmare season" and want to redeem themselves. Meanwhile, school officials attempt to raise funds though a tax levy after defeats at the polls, but if the levy is rejected again, it may mean unemployment for much of the school personnel, including the coaches. In retaliation, the players assume a winning season which puts extra pressure on them to earn scholarships and work much harder than a standard season. Among the handful of players depicted are Ellery Moore, a black defensive end with high ambitions to get out of his small town, especially after it is revealed that he has a shady past which may have included sexual assault. The film also candidly looks at the players off the field, as they drink and taunt fellow classmates who believe that the town has a misplaced sense of priorities. more..

Director: Kenneth A. Carlson

Reviews

  • Beautifully edited, Go Tigers! is an enthralling look at the drama that can transpire in the autumn of one small town on any given Friday.

    Owen Gleiberman - Entertainment Weekly

    19 January 2013

  • Energetic and absorbing documentary.

    Kenneth Turan - Los Angeles Times

    19 January 2013

  • A documentary about a town of 33,000 so consumed by football it makes South Bend and Green Bay look distracted.

    Roger Ebert - The Chicago Sun-Times

    19 January 2013

  • A superbly crafted piece of humanistic cinema.

    Robert K. Elder - The Chicago Tribune

    19 January 2013

  • A nifty piece of entertainment that says a lot about American society.

    Lou Lumenick - New York Post

    19 January 2013

Awards

  • Best Documentary

    Chicago Film Critics Association Awards (2002)

     
  • Best Documentary

    Golden Trailer Awards (2002)

  • Best Documentary

    Independent Spirit Awards (2002)

     
  • Documentary

    Sundance Film Festival (2001)