The new 10-part series American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez takes a very close look at the life of the former NFL star. The series first premiered on FX on September 16, 2024. It is the story of Hernandez's complicated personality, the process through which he reached stardom, and how things went wrong.
American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez comes alive with important people in Hernandez's life, such as Cam Newton and Urban Meyer, who impacted his football career. But who are they, and how do they play into the bigger picture? In American Sports Story, Newton and Meyer, the key figures for part of Hernandez's time at the University of Florida, have moments full of wins and struggles.
Newton, played by Warren Egypt Franklin, is a fleeting but memorable moment. Urban Meyer, played by Tony Yazbeck, makes one aware of the difficult choices that an institution must make in handling star athletes with checkered pasts. Their roles help make one aware of how Hernandez's life went downhill and how his talent masked struggles.
Was Urban Meyer the enabler on American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez?
Urban Meyer was a football coach who played a significant part in Hernandez's early college years. In the series, Meyer is viewed as a great coach who is unaware of Hernandez's issues and struggles. While grooming Hernandez to be a fine tight end, something might have gone unseen.
Meyer's character in American Sports Story, Aaron Hernandez, seems torn throughout the show. The show doesn't point fingers directly but hints at the problems concerning the culture within college football and the overemphasis on winning. Hernandez thrived under Meyer and played within a system focused more on results than responsibility.
In a recent interview with the Boston Globe, Josh Andres Rivera, who plays Hernandez, pointed out,
“Aaron learns that he can get away with things because he’s physically talented. He’s a toy that people can use to win.”
Hernandez's time in Gainesville shows how Meyer's patronage helped advance his career, but it also seemed to have enabled him to get away with his worrisome off-field behavior.
Meyer is a microcosm of the broader picture in college football, too, where superstar players are often forgiven transgressions on and off the field. Stuart Zicherman, the show's creator, says it's a difficult aspect of coaching.
The Boston Globe mentioned on September 16, 2024:
“Meyer’s relationship with Hernandez is emblematic of the ways in which institutions both nurture and fail their players.”
American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez explores the idea that coaches are responsible for their players outside of games.
Cam Newton's brief but impactful presence in American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez
Cam Newton makes a brief but essential cameo in American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez. He is more famous as an NFL player, but when this was all going down around Hernandez, Newton played at the University of Florida in a competitive football program. Warren Egypt Franklin plays Newton as a rising star athlete whose trajectory briefly crossed Hernandez's.
American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez does not focus much on their relationship, but having him in the mix adds a nice touch to the story. Like the road not taken for Hernandez, Newton is a talented athlete who stayed out of trouble to become a successful NFL quarterback. However, Hernandez went off the rails, letting his darker side lead to his downfall.
So, in a way, Newton highlights what Hernandez could have accomplished had his life gone a different way. According to Stuart Zicherman, bringing guys like Newton sets up the Hernandez story in perspective within college football, showing how an athlete can go, per the Boston Globe. Of course, there's a lesson to learn here from the contrast between Newton's success and Hernandez's sad fall.
Don't miss the FX's American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez. With new episodes airing every week, catch the episode the next day on Hulu.
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