The internet is having a great time pitting fictional football players up against each other. Little Giants player Icebox seems to be the clear winner in much of the social media posts. She’s beating out Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, who actually played football in real-life, and Keanu Reeves’ Shane Falco. Shawna Waldron plays Becky “Icebox” O’Shea in the 1994 sports comedy and she is the clear winner of an online poll looking for the best fictional football players.
Football movies are getting a lot of attention at the moment, along with other movies having to do with sports since everything is canceled. Fans are having to watch highlights or result to other forms of entertainment, which usually leads to social media. A Twitter poll has asked for the best fictional football player out of ten players which includes Bobby Boucher, Jr. from The Water Boy, Becky “Icebox” O’Shea from Little Giants, Earl Megget from The Longest Yard, Shane Falco from The Replacements, Paul “Wrecking” Crewe (Adam Sandler, not Burt Reynolds) from The Longest Yard, “Steamin” Willie Beamen from Any Given Sunday, Joe Kingman from The Game Plan, Forrest Gump from Forrest Gump, Jonathan “Mox” Moxon from Varsity Blues, and Vince Howard from Friday Night Lights.
Icebox from Little Giants is getting the most juice on social media at the moment, while Nelly’s Earl Megget from The Longest Yard is also getting some attention. Of course, Dwayne Johnson is getting a lot of love on social media because he actually played the game. The actor even commented on the original post remembering the time he sacked Heisman Trophy winner, quarterback Charlie Ward. After that, Ward went on to be a star NBA player on the Knicks.
There’s obviously going to be some arguments with this kind of poll, especially when two Adam Sandler characters are in the lineup. Many are arguing that Burt Reynolds’ version of Paul “Wrecking” Crewe should have been in the mix instead, which is understandable. For many, 2005’s The Longest Yard is not as good as the original because Reynolds was not Crewe. Surprisingly, Jonathan “Mox” Moxon from Varsity Blues is getting a lot of votes too. “Steamin” Willie Beamen isn’t getting as many votes as many football fans would have assumed, but that’s what happens when he goes up against the Icebox.
Also, a lot of people seem to forget that in 1966, Al Bundy scored four touchdowns in a single game while playing for the Polk High School Panthers in the 1966 city championship game. The Panthers played against Andrew Johnson High School and Bundy scored the game-winning touchdown in the final seconds. Plus, he was up against his old nemesis, “Spare Tire” Dixon. There’s just not enough love for Al Bundy these days, but he wasn’t included in the poll. Ed O’Neill also played coach Kevin O’Shea in Little Giants, so he should have been included, especially since Adam Sandler was put in there twice. Regardless, you can head over and throw in your own picks below, thanks to the Sports Illustrated Twitter account.
