While driving to work Wednesday morning, my jaw dropped when I heard Hall of Fame quarterback Joe Montana on the radio with ESPN announcer Chris Patrick.

Forty years ago, Montana was an All-American quarterback at Notre Dame during the 1970s when the real Rudy played there.    

Montana claimed that a lot of the hit 1990‘s movie “Rudy” was made up for Hollywood, and that certain parts were true and certain parts were stretched.

The story is about a young man named Rudy whose lifetime dream is to play football at Notre Dame. After three years of trying just to enroll Notre Dame, he finally makes it.

Rudy walks on to the team and as the smallest guy on the roster he gets beat up at practice every day but continues to come out, knowing he will never get to run of the stadium and play in a real game.   

Prior to his junior year, the head coach is highly impressed with Rudy’s determination to get into the school that he guarantees Rudy that he will dress out for at least one home game his senior season. But as fate would have it, that coach is fired and the new coach is not aware of the deal.             

Each week he looks up on the wall waiting to see his name on the list of players who are dressing out for the game but every week he is not on the list.

It’s the final home game of Rudy’s career and he is still not on the list. Other players see this and are ticked off. One by one they drop off jerseys off and tell the coach that if Rudy doesn’t play, they don’t play.

After seeing about 30 of his players do this, the coach changes his mind and lets Rudy dress out the final home game against Georgia Tech.

With the game well in hand and just a few minutes remaining, the Irish offense has the ball and coach tells them to run out the clock. However, the players realize if they follow the coach’s order Rudy will never get to play. Instead they change the play and score, allowing Rudy, who plays defense, a chance to play.

With the crowd, players and some coaches, chanting “Rudy, Rudy, Rudy,” the head coach finally makes the call to put Rudy in the game.

Little Rudy runs out on the field not knowing where to line up on the kickoff team. Coach tells him to stay in for the final play of the game and he shakes his man and sacks the quarterback to end the game. Rudy is carried off the field by his teammates. The perfect ending to a career.

But did this really all happen? According to Montana, the scene where the senior players turn in their jerseys to protest the coach’s decision not to play Rudy in the final game, never happened.

Montana also claims the crowd and players never chanted Rudy’s name in the final minute as in the movie and says teammates did jokingly did carry Rudy off the field, but not for making the sack on the final play.

Patrick brought up a good point after he and Montana finished talking. Is Montana still mad forty years later at not being portrayed in the movie?

Say it ain’t so, Joe. This is one of the best sports movies of all-time.

Pick’em

Now onto some picks this week. Care to go Toe to Toe with me? Email me if you’re interested in picking against me. I’m looking for one person each week to challenge me in picking high school and college games each week.   

High school

Madison at Suwannee – Madison owns Suwannee, I see no reason why it won’t continue.

Trenton at Branford – Trenton is young and Branford will expose them.  

Oak Hall at Lafayette – District battle which the more athletic Lafayette team will win.

Union at Hamilton – Union too athletic and wears down small Hamilton team.

Columbia at South Lafourche (La.) – Long trip, maybe too long. Lafourche wins.

Gainesville at John Curtis (La.) – 23-time state champs will roll GHS.

Williston at Dixie – Mike West carries Dixie to win.

Fort White at Newberry – In a close one, Newberry.

Orange Park at Buchholz – Orange Park is too athletic.  

Santa Fe at Eastside – Eastside rebounds from tough loss.  

Bronson at Bishop Snyder – Big Ten battle over by half. Snyder rolls.   

St. Johns at Hawthorne – Hornets will sting the Spartans in district clash.

Jefferson at Taylor -J efferson is loaded but unfortunately so is Taylor County.

Atlantic Coast at Oakleaf – Battle of first-year schools goes to Atlantic Coast.  

Cedar Creek Christian at Bell – Bell is too athletic for small christian school.  

College

West Virginia at Marshall – West Virginia owns this series.

Georgia at South Carolina – South Carolina in an upset.

Duke at Wake Forest – Close game but Wake Forest pulls it out.

South Florida at Florida – Florida will bounce back.

Florida State at Oklahoma – Oklahoma in a close one.

Michigan at Notre Dame – Rich Rodriquez needs it more so I’ll take Michigan.  

Miami at Ohio State – Refs allow Ohio State to win again, just like 2001.  

Oregon at Tennessee – Oregon put up 72 against a Division-1 team last week.

Penn State at Alabama – Even without Ingram, the Tide rolls along.

Iowa State at Iowa – Hawkeyes own the series and keep rolling.

Last week’s results

High School: (12-3)

College: (14-6)

Overall: (26-9)