Sports Movies That Continue to Inspire

When I text with friends who, like me, came of age in the 1980s, it isn’t long before someone refers to a sports movie from his youth. With a buddy facing long odds in a job interview, I shared the tryouts sequence from “Rudy.” When I thought he was overthinking preparation, I sent him the wilderness training montage from “Rocky IV.”

I’ve written “Wanna have a catch?” from the end of “Field of Dreams” to remind one friend of the importance of seeking forgiveness. On the power of granting it, the town-hall vote of confidence in Norman Dale, the high-school basketball coach with a checkered past in “Hoosiers,” is my go-to bounce-pass.