AllMovie

As the dedicated runners of York Duke's 2005 Cross Country team attempt to claim their twenty-fifth state titles in fifty years, filmmaker Matthew Arnold marks the occasion by crafting this sincere portrait of beloved coach Joe Newton, whose tireless efforts in transforming boys into men has inspired generations of high school athletes. The Boys Cross Country team at York High School in Elmhurst, Illinois is the most winning high school team in any sport in the entire United States, a feat accomplished in no small part by the caring mentorship of the man who has been coaching that team for half a decade. In a sport where only the top five athletes per team score points and only even are included in the competition, a staggering 214 boys have joined the York team simply to be in the presence of such an iconic and inspirational leader. Of course coaching such a sizable team is no small undertaking, but even when two of the star athletes are expelled from the school for arson mid-season, the optimistic Coach Newton refuses to give up hope that his team will endure and prevail.