Year of the Bull

In the September 6th, 2004 edition of Sports Illustrated...
UNDER REVIEW
By Nancy Ramsey
Everybody who lives in Liberty City knows the best ticket out of the rough, poor Miami neighborhood is a football scholarship, and Miami Northwestern High School has produced 19 NFL players. In 2001 all eyes were on senior linebacker Taurean Charles, including those of filmmaker Todd Lubin, whose Year of the Bull (Showtime, Sept. 7) follows the All-America for the season, interviewing the 6'3", 230-pound Charles and his widowed mother, twin sister, teachers, coaches, college scouts and community boosters. By day Charles struggles to SAT scores to the NCAA-required 820. By night he is a star; one newscaster refers to the 17-year-old team captain as "Taurean Charles: the man, the myth." Rarely have the tensions and pressures endured by young athletes been effectively conveyed as they are here, and while the film ends with Charles enrolling at Florida, there's an unfortunate postscript: He's currently suspended from the team after twice being arrested for battery.