Most Legendary Coaches in Movie and TV History

They aren't real people, but they're still inspiring.

Coaches are instrumental in sports. Take a look at any competition. It takes talent to get to the top, but it also takes someone to manage that talent.

In movies and television shows, coaches serve the same function, often becoming the motivational fuel for athletes. These wise teachers turn into pop culture legends and resonate for generations. Some make-believe characters are even better than the real thing.

Meet the greatest fictional coaches of all time.

30. Apollo Creed

Chartoff-Winkler Productions / IMDb

Sport: Boxing

Movie/TV show: Rocky III

Year: 1982

Played by: Carl Weathers

In his own words: “There is no tomorrow!”

Bottom Line: Apollo Creed

Chartoff-Winkler Productions / IMDb

Apollo Creed took a unique route to become Rocky Balboa’s coach.

He squared off as Balboa’s main antagonist in the first two installments of the franchise, until Rocky’s original trainer, Mickey Goldmill, passed away and the two boxers forged a bond.

Creed ultimately died in the ring at the hands of Ivan Drago in “Rocky IV,” limiting his mentorship of Balboa to just a solo film. But that was enough time to be an unforgettable character.

29. Bud Kilmer

MTV Films / IMDb

Sport: High school football

Movie/TV show: Varsity Blues

Year: 1999

Played by: Jon Voight

In his own words: “Never show weakness. The only pain that matters is the pain you inflict.”

Bottom Line: Bud Kilmer

MTV Films / IMDb

Bud Kilmer built a legendary program at West Canaan High School, winning 22 district championships and a pair of state titles across three decades.

But Kilmer was unable to deal with a new generation of more outspoken players and struggled to connect with players who refused to play at all costs.

So he opted to retire.

28. Danny O’Shea

Warner Bros. / IMDb

Sport: Peewee football

Movie/TV show: Little Giants

Year: 1994

Played by: Rick Moranis

In his own words: “You guys belong out there with those Cowboys. You know how I know that? Because I belong out there with my brother.”

Bottom Line: Danny O’Shea

Warner Bros. / IMDb

Kevin O’Shea’s older brother, Danny O’Shea (played by Ed O’Neill), is an ex-football star who’s at the helm of a pee-wee football juggernaut. Kevin sought to knock him off his high horse by assembling his own squad.

Led by Kevin’s daughter (nicknamed the “Ice Box”), the Little Giants overcome great odds to topple the Cowboys in the climactic showdown.

27. “Skip” Joe Riggins

Movieclips / YouTube

Sport: Minor league baseball

Movie/TV show: Bull Durham

Year: 1988

Played by: Trey Wilson

In his own words: “This … is a simple game. You throw the ball. You hit the ball. You catch the ball. You got it?”

Bottom Line: “Skip” Joe Riggins

The Mount Company / IMDb

“Skip” Joe Riggins had one goal in mind for the Durham Bulls: keep things simple. Unfortunately, his team didn’t get that message.

Skip was worn, grizzled and a seasoned minor league manager, resigned to his lifetime of watching mediocre baseball.

He had one outburst where he berated his team for their attitude, which stands as one of the great coach scenes in movie history.

26. Brickma

Twentieth Century Fox / IMDb

Sport: Major league baseball

Movie/TV show: Rookie of the Year

Year: 1993

Played by: Daniel Stern

In his own words: “I have found the secret: hot ice. You heat up the ice cubes. It’s the best of both worlds!”

Bottom Line: Brickma

Twentieth Century Fox / IMDb

The pitching coach for the Chicago Cubs was odd, quirky and a bit anti-social. But he took Henry Rowengartner under his wing.

As a boy in a game surrounded by (often disgusting) men, Rowengartner leaned on Brickma to ease his tension in the Show. It might be the only useful tool Brickma has as a pitching coach.

Sometimes, that’s all a coach needs.

25. Harry Hogge

Don Simpson/Jerry Bruckheimer Films / IMDb

Sport: NASCAR racing

Movie/TV show: Days of Thunder

Year: 1990

Played by: Robert Duvall

In his own words: “No, no, he didn’t slam you, he didn’t bump you, he didn’t nudge you … he rubbed you. And rubbin’, son, is racin’.”

Bottom Line: Harry Hogge

Don Simpson/Jerry Bruckheimer Films / IMDb

The brains behind the driving strategy of Cole Trickle in “Days of Thunder,” Harry Hogge embraced his role as the captain of the crew.

He taught his young driver the intricacies of the sport, how and when to bump and rub other cars for leverage, and what was in and out of bounds.

It was the exact sort of coaching Trickle needed as he drove to greatness.

24. Coach Klein

Robert Simonds Productions / IMDb

Sport: College football

Movie/TV show: The Waterboy

Year: 1998

Played by: Henry Winkler

In his own words: “What momma don’t know won’t hurt her.”

Bottom Line: Coach Klein

Robert Simonds Productions / IMDb

Scarred by the betrayal of University of Louisiana coach Red Beaulieu, Coach Klein took over one of the worst football programs in the country, the South Central Louisiana State University Mud Dogs.

Klein was once an offensive mastermind when the two were assistant coaches together at Louisiana, but Beaulieu stole his schemes and used them to build a powerhouse program.

The waterboy, Bobby Boucher, provides new life in coaching for Klein, who helps Boucher realize his full potential.

23. Molly McGrath

Hawn/Sylbert Movie Company / IMDb

Sport: High school football

Movie/TV show: Wildcats

Year: 1986

Played by: Goldie Hawn

In his own words: “You owe me a new stop watch … you p—ies!”

Bottom Line: Molly McGrath

Hawn/Sylbert Movie Company / IMDb

Molly McGrath took on a job that nobody else wanted — coaching the inner-city Central High School Wildcats football team.

The daughter of a prominent coach, McGrath was no-nonsense and refused to accept the typical insubordinate behavior that had become the team’s reputation.

Using her knowledge and showing her courage, she got her players to buy in to her program, and the team banded together to win a championship.

22. Eric Taylor

Imagine Television / IMDb

Sport: High school football

Movie/TV show: Friday Night Lights

Year: 2006-11

Played by: Kyle Chandler

In his own words: “Clear eyes. Full hearts. Can’t lose.”

Bottom Line: Eric Taylor

Imagine Television / IMDb

The popular television series was inspired by the 1990 nonfiction book by H. G. Bissinger, which was adapted into a 2004 film of the same name.

Eric Taylor started off as the Dillon Panthers coach and led the team to the state title in the first season of the show. Then Taylor became the coach at East Dillon High School, a new school, and started from scratch to build another state champ.

With epic high school football and drama, Taylor delivered Texas-sized goosebumps.

21. Jimmy Dugan

Columbia Pictures / IMDb

Sport: Baseball

Movie/TV show: A League of Their Own

Year: 1992

Played by: Tom Hanks

In his own words: “There’s no crying in baseball!.”

Bottom Line: Jimmy Dugan

Columbia Pictures / IMDb

A former baseball great, Jimmy Dugan doesn’t immediately take his role as the manager of the Rockford Peaches very seriously.

His team’s determination and skill wins him over, and he eventually is able to connect with his players in a way that he hadn’t connected with anyone in years.

They help him out of his bad habits, and it ends up in a truly memorable season.

20. Morris Buttermaker

Paramount Pictures / IMDb

Sport: Little league baseball

Movie/TV show: Bad News Bears

Year: 1976

Played by: Walter Matthau

In his own words: “All I know is when we win a game, it’s a team win. When we lose a game, it’s a team loss.”

Bottom Line: Morris Buttermaker

Paramount Pictures / IMDb

Morris Buttermaker had a few flaws, to put it lightly. He drives drunk … with kids in the car. He rewards Little League players with beers and promotes objectionable sportsmanship.

But that’s what made him the perfect man to coach the Bad News Bears. He has a genuinely good heart and wants the kids to succeed and enjoy the game.

He taught them that fun was the most important part, even if he did get them slightly tipsy.

19. Patches O’Houlihan

Movieclips / YouTube

Sport: Dodgeball

Movie/TV show: Dodgeball

Year: 2004

Played by: Rip Torn

In his own words: “If you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball.”

Bottom Line: Patches O’Houlihan

Twentieth Century Fox / IMDb

An all-time great on the dodgeball floor, Patches O’Houlihan was introduced to the Average Joes dodgeball team by chance and transformed them into champions.

Through a rigorous coaching style, he made them unafraid to compete. With the help of some added talent and fortuitous judge decisions, Average Joes took down the mighty Globo Gym Purple Cobras.

18. Nate Scarboro

Paramount Pictures / IMDb

Sport: Football

Movie/TV show: The Longest Yard

Year: 1974

Played by: Michael Conrad

In his own words: “You spend fourteen years in this tank, you begin to understand that you’ve only got two things left they can’t sweat out of you or beat out of you … your balls. And you better hang onto them, because they’re about the only thing you’re gonna have when you get out of here.”

Bottom Line: Nate Scarboro

Paramount Pictures / IMDb

Some may question the coaching credentials of a felon, but Nate Scarboro’s resume stacks right up there with the great fictional coaches ever.

Assisting former quarterback Paul Crewe to assemble a team taking on prison guards was the easy part. Getting them to play together was a different story.

But thanks to a partnership with Crews and a severe disdain for their opponents, the inmates secured an unlikely victory.

17. Jimmy McGinty

Bel Air Entertainment / IMDb

Sport: Pro football

Movie/TV show: The Replacements

Year: 2000

Played by: Gene Hackman

In his own words: “There is no tomorrow for you, and that makes you all very dangerous people!”

Bottom Line: Jimmy McGinty

Bel Air Entertainment / IMDb

During a rare strike by professional football players, the owners opted to take the divisive route of bringing in replacement players, and Jimmy McGinty was the man chosen to lead the Washington Sentinels.

A cohesive team of misfits led by former bust quarterback Shane Falco got Washington into the playoffs.

Then, McGinty and his staff channeled an “us against the world” mentality to achieve greatness.

16. George Knox

Caravan Pictures / IMDb

Sport: Pro baseball

Movie/TV show: Angels in the Outfield

Year: 1994

Played by: Danny Glover

In his own words: “There’s this thing called ‘talent.’ They don’t have it.”

Bottom Line: George Knox

Caravan Pictures / IMDb

At the end of his rope with the California Angels baseball team, manager George Knox was in a constant state of frustration with the whole organization.

After two foster children began coming to the games, Knox realized the team would get fortuitous bounces with them around. Because of this, he adopted the two as team mascots, leading the Angels to a pennant victory.

He later adopted both boys for real.

15. Pop Fisher

Movieclips / YouTube

Sport: Baseball

Movie/TV show: The Natural

Year: 1984

Played by: Wilford Brimley

In his own words: “People don’t start playing ball at your age, they retire!”

Bottom Line: Pop Fisher

Movieclips / YouTube

Pop Fisher desperately needed a miracle. Then Roy Hobbs entered his life.

As the manager and part-owner of the fictional New York Knights, Fisher put his share of the team on the line, losing his share if they failed to win the pennant.

With Hobbs as his main horse, Fisher balanced all that pressure, and the bet on himself and his team paid off. Unless you read the book.

14. B.A. Strothers

Movieclips / YouTube

Sport: Pro football

Movie/TV show: North Dallas Forty

Year: 1979

Played by: Charles Durning

In his own words: “If you moved any slower, you’d be going backwards!”

Bottom Line: B.A. Strothers

Movieclips / YouTube

B.A. Strother is a legendary NFL coach with an old-school style, often expecting players to ignore their injuries and tough it out to get on the field.

He basically poured the painkillers into players’ mouths and did anything and everything to win. He kept doing it that way because it worked.

While not exactly a player-first mindset, the approach was undeniably effective.

13. Uchiyama

Dentsu Music and Entertainment / IMDb

Sport: Baseball

Movie/TV show: Mr. Baseball

Year: 1992

Played by: Ken Takakura

In his own words: “Baseball is work. Not fun.”

Bottom Line: Uchiyama

Dentsu Music and Entertainment / IMDb

When former major league great Jack Elliot goes to Japan to play baseball, he figures it will be just an easy paycheck. Little did he expect the drill sergeant managerial style of Uchiyama.

Elliot’s laissez-faire nature of the game doesn’t fly with Uchiyama, a Japanese playing legend in his own right.

Through their relationship, Elliot begins to put in the work, turning his career and his attitude around.

12. Ed Gennero

Paramount Pictures / YouTube

Sport: College football

Movie/TV show: Necessary Roughness

Year: 1991

Played by: Hector Elizondo

In his own words: “Get up, Wally, people are watching. Not many … but they’re watching.”

Bottom Line: Ed Gennero

Paramount Pictures / YouTube

Assembling a college football team from scratch isn’t an easy task. Throw in the factor that Ed Gennero had no scholarships to offer, and that makes it nearly impossible.

Somehow, Gennero scraped together enough players to field a team and got them to believe in themselves enough to topple the No. 1 team in the country.

11. Eddie Franklin

Permut Presentations / IMDb

Sport: NBA basketball

Movie/TV show: Eddie

Year: 1996

Played by: Whoopi Goldberg

In his own words: “Hey, Patton, pass the ball! What are you, the black hole of basketball?”

Bottom Line: Eddie Franklin

Permut Presentations / IMDb

Pulled directly out of the stands to coach the New York Knicks after verbally berating the players, Eddie Franklin becomes the interim woman in charge of the most valuable basketball franchise in the world.

Despite a lack of credible experience, she connects with the players, whose egos are out of control, and brings them together to play as a team.

10. Irv Blitzer

Walt Disney Pictures / IMDb

Sport: Bobsled

Movie/TV show: Cool Runnings

Year: 1993

Played by: John Candy

In his own words: “Oh, pardon me. I didn’t realize that four black guys in a bobsled could make you blush.”

Bottom Line: Irv Blitzer

Walt Disney Pictures / IMDb

Irv Blitzer’s job was seemingly beneath him. A champion bobsledder with a stacked resume, he’s given the impossible task of turning four eclectic Jamaicans into an Olympic-caliber bobsledding team.

It’s a proper punishment for a man that was caught in a cheating scandal, but through the mentoring of this team, Blitzer becomes a changed man, truly connecting with the group and seeing them achieve the impossible.

9. Reggie Dunlop

Kings Road Entertainment / IMDb

Sport: Minor league ice hockey

Movie/TV show: Slap Shot

Year: 1977

Played by: Paul Newman

In his own words: “They spent their own dough to get here, and they came here to see us! All right, let’s show ’em what we got, guys! Get out there on the ice and let ’em know you’re there. Get that f—— stick in their side. Let ’em know you’re there! Get that lumber in his teeth. Let ’em know you’re there!”

Bottom Line: Reggie Dunlop

Kings Road Entertainment / IMDb

Foul-mouthed, overly sexual and with a massive chip on his shoulder, Reggie Dunlop heads up the Chiefs hockey team.

He’s got a lot on his plate, and frequently sinks to the level of overt manipulation, even tricking his players into thinking he’s going to move the team to Florida.

Question his tactics all you like, but they worked, as he got the Chiefs to abandon their dirty-playing style and frustrate their opponents into a forfeit.

8. Chubbs Peterson

Universal Pictures / YouTube

Sport: Golf

Movie/TV show: Happy Gilmore

Year: 1996

Played by: Carl Weathers

In his own words: “It’s all in the hips. It’s all in the hips. It’s all in the hips. It’s all in the hips.”

Bottom Line: Chubbs Peterson

Universal Pictures / IMDb

A retired prodigy following a tragic incident with an alligator that cost him his hand, Chubbs Peterson stumbles onto Happy Gilmore, a former hockey player with unspeakable length off the tee.

Chubb helps Happy develop a short game and a winning attitude to match. Although Chubbs ultimately passes before seeing Happy at his peak, all of Happy’s success in the golf would not have been possible without Chubbs’ tutelage.

7. Hayden Fox

Bungalow 78 Productions / IMDb

Sport: College football

Movie/TV show: Coach

Year: 1989-97

Played by: Craig T. Nelson

In his own words: “You see, this is why I hate education.”

Bottom Line: Hayden Fox

Bungalow 78 Productions / IMDb

Hayden Fox is sarcastic, somewhat petty and definitely still harboring an immature “jock” mentality. As the head football coach at fictional Minnesota State, Fox turns the Screaming Eagles into a perennial powerhouse in college football.

Given what we know about his coaching staff, that achievement is a mighty one. His off-the-field antics and pranks showcase his creativity, which undoubtedly bleeds into his coaching style and makes the school one of the top destinations in the country.

6. Tony D’Amato

Warner Bros. / IMDb

Sport: Pro football

Movie/TV show: Any Given Sunday

Year: 1999

Played by: Al Pacino

In his own words: “You find out life’s this game of inches, so is football. Because in either game — life or football — the margin for error is so small. I mean, one half a step too late or too early and you don’t quite make it. One-half second too slow, too fast, and you don’t quite catch it. The inches we need are everywhere around us. They’re in every break of the game, every minute, every second. On this team we fight for that inch.”

Bottom Line: Tony D’Amato

Warner Bros. / IMDb

Tony D’Amato is a Hall of Fame coach near the end of his rope. Reinvigorated when the hyperathletic, ahead-of-his-time Willie Beaman steps in at quarterback, D’Amato enjoys a career renaissance.

After a series of growing pains and dealing with trainers and egos, D’Amato rallied his group to fight for every inch on the field and eventually heads to greener pastures to build a new legacy, taking Beaman with him.

5. Lou Brown

Mirage Enterprises / IMDb

Sport: Pro baseball

Movie/TV show: Major League 1-2

Year: 1989, 1994

Played by: James Gammon

In his own words: “C’mon Rickie, give ‘em the heater.”

Bottom Line: Lou Brown

Mirage Enterprises / IMDb

Lou Brown was a joke of a hire for the Cleveland Indians, and his sole purpose was to be the low-budget figurehead for a team that was assembled to fail.

With his sarcastic nature and low-tolerance for BS, he is the perfect man to lead this group of misfit ballplayers. Thanks to a front-office executive, Brown gets wind that the owner built the team to lose as many games as possible.

Brown uses this disrespect as a rallying cry to climb to impossible heights.

4. Mickey Goldmill

Chartoff-Winkler Productions / IMDb

Sport: Boxing

Movie/TV show: Rocky 1-2

Year: 1976, 1979

Played by: Burgess Meredith

In his own words: “Like the guy says, you’re gonna eat lightning and you’re gonna crap thunder. You’re gonna become a very dangerous person.”

Bottom Line: Mickey Goldmill

Chartoff-Winkler Productions / IMDb

Mickey’s motivational style is more old school, but it’s exactly what Rocky Balboa needed to become a champion.

The hard-luck fighter and Goldmill forged an odd father-son type of bond through Goldmill’s constant verbal abuses (“You’re a bum, Rock”) and overbearing training style.

Balboa learns to overcome adversity, ascending to become perhaps the greatest movie athlete ever.

3. Norman Dale

Cinema ’84 / IMDb

Sport: High school basketball

Movie/TV show: Hoosiers

Year: 1986

Played by: Gene Hackman

In his own words: “If you put your effort and concentration into playing to your potential, to be the best that you can be, I don’t care what the scoreboard says at the end of the game, in my book we’re gonna be winners.”

Bottom Line: Norman Dale

Cinema ’84 / IMDb

Basketball is pretty important in Indiana, so when Norman Dale, a basketball coach with a spotty past, arrives in Hickory to take over as the high school’s basketball coach, the town does not welcome him with open arms.

But he earns the respect of his players and wins over the townspeople as his team goes on one of the most inspiring runs in movie history, leading a journey that is loosely based on the Milan High School team that won the 1954 state championship.

2. Gordon Bombay

Walt Disney Pictures / IMDb

Sport: Youth ice hockey

Movie/TV show: Mighty Ducks 1-2

Year: 1992, 1994

Played by: Emilio Estevez

In his own words: “Ducks fly together.”

Bottom Line: Gordon Bombay

Walt Disney Pictures / IMDb

A former hockey player whose injury woes crushed his dreams, Gordon Bombay finds himself drawn back to the game he loved as a child through some community service work.

His shrewd maneuvers and team-bonding style of coaching provides the motivation and fuel his underrated team of castoffs needed to achieve greatness.

1. Mr. Miyagi

Columbia Pictures / IMDb

Sport: Karate

Movie/TV show: The Karate Kid 1-3, The Next Karate Kid

Year: 1984, 1986, 1989, 1994

Played by: Pat Morita

In his own words: “Wax on, wax off.”

Bottom Line: Mr. Miyagi

Columbia Pictures / IMBb

The ultimate mentor, Miyagi, a handyman, takes on Daniel LaRusso as his protege, teaching him strength and composure with a series of curious tasks.

Miyagi’s ability to forge a bond with students and embolden them to stand up for themselves is unmatched. He’s the silent killer, knowing he could end his opponent in one swift movement, but often opting not to engage.

In the end, Mr. Miyagi also is the ultimate winner.

Related: Greatest Fictional Athletes