Famous Football TV Characters: The Untold Story of Their Athletic Careers

Over the years, there have been some memorable football characters when it comes to television and the big screen.

Those stars have flashed some brilliance at both the collegiate and high school level. But, when the lights went out and the movie ended, the careers of these football talents continued.

Some went on to have more success than others, including professional careers, but for some tragedy struck, cutting their playing days a little short

While there were plenty of fictional football stars, we have narrowed it down to the top 10.

Here is what happened to those 10 stars and how their careers played out.

Let's take a look.

No. 10 Lance Harbor (Paul Walker): Varsity Blues

Varsity Blues featured some of the greatest high school talent in movie history and perhaps the most talented was star quarterback Lance Harbor.

Lance was an all-state quarterback in high school and suffered a devastating knee injury that ended his high school career and presumably ended his football career.

After taking a year off from football to recover his knee, Harbor made one of the most remarkable comebacks in the history of Texas football.

Due to the injured knee, Harbor did not have any scholarship offers and was forced to walk on at a small junior college near Houston.

After serving as a backup for a season, he shined during his sophomore campaign and earned a scholarship to Texas.

Mack Brown was new at Texas and gave Harbor the opportunity to win the starting job midway through his junior season. After winning a few games, Harbor suffered a devastating injury to the opposite knee and never played again.

No. 9 Alvin Mack (Duane Davis): The Program

Alvin Mack was a can't miss NFL product entering his junior season at ESU. Mack did not seem to care much about academics, but had all the talent in the world.

During his senior season, he suffers a devastating injury to his leg that would have ended the career of most.

With steroids and other performance enhancing drugs, Mack is able to fight his way back and even though he is not well enough to participate in the NFL combine, he is still selected with the final pick of the first round by the New York Giants.

Mack earned the starting middle linebacker job as a rookie and was quickly becoming a star until three failed drug tests put him out of the league for a year.

He never returned and remains one of the true wasted talents in fictional memory.

No. 8 Vince Howard (Michael B. Jordan): Friday Night Lights

Vince Howard was one of the key characters during the final two seasons of Friday Night Lights.

The critically acclaimed television series may have been the best of all-time and it ended with coach Taylor moving out of the state to take another coaching job.

Before he moved he helped star quarterback Vince Howard make a complete 180 and turn his life around.

At the end of the show Howard was leading the new Dillon football team and entering his senior season.

Howard starred in his senior campaign and earned a scholarship to Arkansas where he redshirted during his first season and played a reserve role for the next two.

After stepping into the starting role as a junior, Howard made the all-SEC second-team as a senior and was drafted in the sixth round by the Washington Redskins. 

He spent a few years on the practice squad before falling out of the NFL for good.

No. 7. Charlie Tweeder (Scott Caan): Varsity Blues

When it comes to partying, few high school students could get down like Charlie Tweeder.

Tweeder was a star receiver on the football team and not many could party like he did and still come to play every game.

He was a Texas boy through and through. After a successful high school career, the undersized receiver accepted a scholarship to SMU.

After receiving minimal playing time as a freshman, Tweeder stepped into the starting role during his sophomore season and never looked back.

He led the team in receiving three straight seasons, but due to his lack of size and speed he was undrafted.

He did sign as a free agent with the Houston Oilers. After spending some time on the practice squad and the bench, Tweeder retired when the Oilers moved to Tennessee because he did not want to leave the great state of Texas.

No. 6 Paul Blake (Scott Bakula): Necessary Roughness

As a 34-year old college quarterback, there was not much to look forward to after college for Paul Blake.

Blake had a successful college career at Texas State.

Due to his age he was not selected in the NFL draft, but was signed by the Washington Redskins. He spent two seasons as a backup before calling it a career and becoming an assistant coach for the better part of two decades.

Blake was known for working great with older college quarterbacks coming into the NFL and considers Chris Weinke to be his biggest success.

No. 5 Darnell Jefferson (Omar Epps): The Program

Darnell Jefferson was a star running back coming out of high school before committing to ESU.

He had all the talent in the world, but had trouble holding onto the ball during his freshman season.

Besides having an exceptionally good looking girlfriend, Jefferson also has a lot of game on the field.

After four successful seasons at ESU, he eventually is drafted in the second round of the NFL draft by the Oakland Raiders.

Jefferson fit right into the bad boy image of the Raiders during the late 1990's and was even selected to two Pro Bowls.

He retired in 2009 after 12 successful seasons in Oakland and has starred on some excellent reality television shows on VH1 and Bravo.

No. 4 Jonathan Moxon (James Van Der Beek): Varsity Blues

Not many people can step into the starting quarterback spot and be successful like Jonathan Moxon was after filling in for the injured Lance Harbor.

While it was already known what he could do in the classroom, Moxon proved his talent on the field as well.

He earned a full ride to Penn for academics and walked onto the football team. After redshirting his first season and not earning any playing time over the next four years, Moxon was inexplicably granted a sixth-year of eligibility.

The starter on that Penn team went down with an injury and Moxon helped lead the team to the Division 1-AA National Championship before moving on to become a successful businessman on Wall Street.

No. 3 Smash Williams (Gaius Charles): Friday Night Lights

Brian "Smash" Williams was the heart and soul of the first two seasons of Friday Night Lights. He had everything a coach would want in a running back and more.

After starring at West Dillion High, Williams took his talents to Texas A&M.

He was a solid contributor on those Aggies teams of a few years ago. Williams got progressively better during his four years on campus and earned the outright starting job as a senior after sharing the carries for the previous two years. 

Williams never quite had the talent to make it to the NFL, but eventually bought the burger joint that he and Matt Saracen used to work at in high school. He still continues to serve burgers in Dillion, Texas for a living.

No.2 Billy Bob (Ron Lester): Varsity Blues

Billy Bob is without question one of the most memorable characters in all of fictional cinematic memory.

He was the anchor on one of the most complete offenses in the state of Texas.

After high school, Billy Bob received a scholarship offer from Georgia and decided to become a Bulldog.

He redshirted as a freshman and started the next four years at left tackle, protecting the quarterback's blind side like nobody else in the country could.

Billy Bob was a three-time All American and even earned the SEC offensive player of the year award as a senior.

He was the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL draft by the Cleveland Browns, but could not bring the franchise out of the doldrums, even though he had nine successful NFL seasons.

No. 1 Bobby Boucher (Adam Sandler): Waterboy

Topping the list is the best linebacker in fictional cinematic movie history.

South Central Louisiana State had never seen a linebacker like Boucher. He had everything from talent on the field, to unprecedented charisma off of it.

He was a little older than most freshmen, but that did not stop him from leading the nation in tackles for four straight seasons.

Boucher was eventually drafted by the Seattle Seahawks, but could not transition well off the field to life in a northern climate.

He was shy and a little out there to put it lightly. His southern style did not mingle well with management and the other players, causing him to be traded to the Jacksonville Jaguars, who were one of the newer teams in the NFL.

Boucher starred for five years with the Jaguars after getting comfortable in his old climate. He led the NFL with 206 tackles during his final season.