"Run the Race" opens with a bang-bang football play as a high school RB dashing for a touchdown. At that point, we know that ol' Number 2, Zach Truett, will be the focus of the film, as he aspires to get out of the squalid conditions of small-town Bessemer and earn a football scholarship to the University of Florida.

But the film is much more than the trials and tribulations of Zach joining Gator Nation. The genuine focus of the film is the relationship of Zach with his younger brother Dave, who pull themselves up from their bootstraps out of a dysfunctional family.

Zach is the star halfback at Bessemer High, and Dave is the quarterback,. In the first half of the film, Zach incurs a torn ACL when he engages a rival athlete in a brawl at a picnic. Dave has a head injury that results in ongoing seizures. There was a flaw in the film that Dave's injury was never shown; it was only mentioned late in the film in expository dialogue.

There is a romantic subplot in the film that never really works. Zach strikes up a relationship with Ginger, a hospital intern. Ginger's parents are devoutly religious, and they subject Zach to the grand inquisition. As he is leaving the home, Ginger continues to grill Zach about his doubts, and she is offended, breaking off the relationship. This part of the film was not convincing because Zach was giving genuine answers to all of the family's invasive questions. The parents really liked Zach's honesty, but, for some reason, Ginger lacked their patience and seemed insistent that he become a true believer or she wouldn't have anything to with him.

The film was more successful with supporting roles such as the caring high school football/track coach; the estranged father of the boys who is the town drunkard; and the devoted godmother of the two boys named "Nanny." It appeared as though Zach and Dave fended for themselves on the poor side of town in substandard living conditions. The coffee pot was broken, and it was unclear if the two boys even slept in beds. Why did "Nanny" never appear with them in the home?

In this Christian-based film, there was the obligatory character of the local preacher. Thankfully, his sermons were brief and to the point. The game-changer was when he described for the small congregation "the moment" when the devotee learns of "the plan." Tim Tebow executive produced the film and makes a surprise return to Gatorland in the film's closing credits. One of the best parts of the film film was the attention paid to the sports action scenes, including wide-open play-calling on the gridiron and a breath-taking track sequence.

. . . "Rich "The Gypper" Ritchie the White House, so look for at least one cast member of RUN THE RACE to become POTUS soon. Bessemer long has been considered the buckle of Michigan's Upper Peninsula Gogebic Range Bible Belt. Changing A.D. Johnston High School's mascot from "The Speedboys" to "The Rebels" and transplanting a renamed "Paavo Maki" to a Southern slum state to make his miraculous tale more plausible is hardly enough to upset the locals who know all about "The Pride of Bessemer" by Heart. Bessemer, located about halfway between Wakefield and Ironwood near the Wisconsin border on U.S. 2, gets around 400 inches of snow during each of its 10-month winters, which is why both football and track seasons are limited to six weeks apiece. Every home in Bessemer necessarily features a perpetual bonfire burning in its backyard, as shown in RUN THE RACE. (Such a thing would be unheard of at any homestead south of the Mason-Dixon Line!) Most Bessemer residents drink nothing but Fanta Pop, which RUN THE RACE faithfully depicts. Bessemer's classier restaurants sport paper towel rolls on spindles, in lieu of napkins, as illustrated in RUN THE RACE. This flick even shows the late "Lasse Maki's" Class D U.P. Track & Field Regional Record 400m run (49.32),as well as the ease with which his surviving big brother Paavo was allowed to take his place in the State Finals Below the Bridge (something never allowed in any of America's backwards by-the-book Southern States!!). Now you know the REAL story of RUN THE RACE, so rush out to enjoy this inspiring True Life flick!

6/10 - an entertaining family/sports drama that did feel a little preachy at times