Glory Road Actor Returns To El Paso For 20th Film Anniversary

Some anniversaries just hit different. This year marks 60 years since Texas Western College made history with one of the most important victories in college basketball, and El Paso made sure the moment didn't go unnoticed.

On Wednesday, April 1st, UTEP celebrated the 20th anniversary of Glory Road with a special free screening of the film at Memorial Gym, the very same court where the legendary 1965-66 Miners played. It was the kind of full-circle moment that gives you chills.

UTEP's Glory Road Screening at Memorial Gym Brought the Story Home

Showing Glory Road at Memorial Gym wasn't just a nice touch. It was the only right call. Fans, along with friends and family members of that legendary team, filled the gym for the event. Among those in attendance were relatives of Bobby Joe Hill, as well as former players Louis Baudoin and Togo Railey.

And this wasn't the first time the film came home to that court. The cast and crew from Glory Road gathered with the real-life Texas Western team at Memorial Gym back in November 2005 to promote the film's release. That event gave El Pasoans a chance to meet the people behind the movie before it ever hit theaters, and it gave the real Miners a chance to see their story honored in person.

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Schin Kerr Returns to El Paso to Honor David Lattin and the 1966 Miners

Actor Schin Kerr, who portrayed Miners great David Lattin in the film, was on hand for Wednesday's anniversary screening. Kerr sat down one-on-one with Jon Teicher to share behind-the-scenes stories and reflect on what Glory Road has meant over the past two decades.

For Kerr, being back in El Paso carried a weight that was hard to put into words.

"It's been a surreal moment all these years, and even to come back right now, you can kind of feel the energy, being back around El Pasoans," Kerr said. "It's still kind of unbelievable because, like I said, they're a hero in our household, and then when you get an opportunity to portray a hero, there's really no words you can put to that."

Don Haskins and Josh Lucas Opened Up About Glory Road Before It Ever Hit Theaters

Back in November 2005, Steve Kaplowitz of 600 ESPN and El Paso Inc. had a chance to sit down with both actor Josh Lucas and the Bear himself, Don Haskins, at that Memorial Gym event to talk about the film and their relationship. Some of what they shared has held up remarkably well twenty years later.

When Kaplowitz asked how they'd describe their relationship, Coach Haskins kept it simple: "He is a wonderful, down-to-earth guy. I'm from Oklahoma, he's from Arkansas, what a better fit than that."

Lucas was a little more expansive. "Every time Don Haskins comes into someone's life, he changes their life. You feel sort of 'under the Bear glare' I call it. He gives you a stare and you know you got to live up to what he did and who he is."

Asked if it was difficult to research the part and get Haskins' mannerisms right, Lucas laughed before answering.

"Well, the first time we saw each other, he came up to me and basically patted me on the belly and said, 'Son, if you are going to play me, you better start drinking beer.' At the end of the movie, he came up to me and patted me on the belly and said, 'I was never this big. You're going to make me look bad.'"

And when asked what it was like watching Lucas portray a younger version of himself on screen, the Bear's answer was pure Haskins.

"Well, I only wish I'd been as good looking as him. I thought I was watching me. I really did. Some of the things that were said in the film were exactly what I said in real life. Like the part in the movie when Bobby Joe Hill was going to quit the team and I told him that if he quits now, he will be quitting the rest of his life."

That line wasn't just in the movie. That was Don Haskins.

How Glory Road Earned Its Place Among the Greatest Sports Films Ever Made

Glory Road was released by Walt Disney Pictures and Jerry Bruckheimer Films in January 2006. The film earned three award nominations and won two, including the 2006 ESPY Award for Best Sports Movie, cementing its place as one of the most important sports films ever made.

As Josh Lucas said back in 2005: "All that matters to me is that Haskins, the real players, and the people of El Paso like it."

Twenty years later, it's safe to say they do.