Adam Sandler as Paul "Wrecking" Crewe Burt Reynolds as Nate Scarborough A dilemma - is it Nelly or the Panthers' Steve Smith? Michael Irvin Brian Bosworth The superb Chris Berman The Longest Yard Hollywood's fascination with re-making films from the 1960s and 1970s has been somewhat of a disaster (see The Italian Job as exhibit A) and I did approach "The Longest Yard" with some trepidation, rembering how good the original was in its day. I need not have worried. You just have to get over the fact that Adam Sandler is about 5-9 and 180 in real life. Once you are past that, you can play "spot the real NFL player" throughout the film and enjoy the many great side references that the producers have thrown in. Burt Reynolds was Paul "Wrecking" Crewe in the original, the role now taken over by Sandler. Reynolds now plays Nate Scarborough, former NFL veteran who takes a coaching and mentoring role to the team. The original Captain Knauer also turns up in a cameo role as one of the prison governor's golfing four-ball. For NFL players, Michael Irvin is one of the prisoner wide receivers, and the guards include Brian Bosworth and steroid-freak Bill Romanowski, who has just recovered from the 1996 hit that Ian Beckles put on him during the Bucs v Eagles' game that season. Of course the story is the prisoners against the guards and you know the prisoners are going to win having caused mayhem in the process. The game itself has been updated to modern day standards with ESPN references, Chris Berman (who is just brilliant) and some great plays including the final one which is actually a 1992 play ran by Sam Wyche where Steve DeBerg walked to the sideline actually going in motion. The prisoners also run the "fumblerooski" play seen in the 1983 Orange Bowl between Nebraska and Miami. Chris Rock takes the role of "Caretaker" and Nelly (although I was convinced it was Steve Smith for most of the film) is one of the prisoner running backs. In short, this is a film that will make you laugh and the football sequences are so over-the-top in fitting in with the pattern of the film, that you really do not care for the technicalities. Buccaneer connections One of the guards is former Buc player turned actor, Conrad Goode. Conrad played for the Buccaneers in 1987 making two starts at guard that season. He became an actor on leaving football and had a part in the film "Con Air" with Nicholas Cage. Former Buccaneer RB Mazio Royster is the stunt double for Nelly and runs all the plays for him during the game (a similar stunt role to the one he played in Any Given Sunday). Royster was an 11th round draft pick of the Bucs in 1992 and played three seasons in Tampa Bay.