Samuel A. Foster Jr.

The Coast Samuel A. Foster Jr.

Three Afro-American veterans return home after World War II to their hometown in Newark, New Jersey. The friends have not seen one another since serving in the military and meet in a neighborhood tavern located on FOUR CORNERS called The Coast. All three experienced racial prejudice in the military yet they managed to overcome those trials and served their country with distinction. Two of the friends, Dan Parks and Ray Smith, played high school football and still have a passion for the game. They decide to organize a sandlot football team to play in their spare time. William (Billy) Harrison was not an athlete, but he admires his two friends and convinces them that he can learn the game. On the first day of practice, two seemingly shady characters proposition Dan and Ray to put together a football team in two weeks to play an established local team. After listening to an unbelievable story, Dan and Ray decide to accept the challenge presented by Jim Coarsley and Sterling Boatwhite. With the financial support of a black entrepreneur, who has an establishment on The Coast, they field a team and win the game. The unexpected success of the team, sparked by Dan's exceptional leadership and outstanding performance, results in a large following of fans mostly from the community. Before the first season ends, the team, now called 'The Boomerangs,'is victorious over several semi-professional teams. The women in the lives of Dan, Ray, and Billy become part of the drama and confusion that develops as these men lead the all-black football team into the world of the racially segregated world of semi-professional football. Dan's life becomes more complicated when Ted Nolte, the owner of the Metuchen Golden Bears, becomes interested in recruiting him. Dan has plans to go to college and wants to protect his amateur status. Nolte is affiliated with the professional New York Yankees professional football team and pursues Dan. Dan's girlfriend, Ruth, wants him to stop playing with the