Wildcats

Molly McGrath, a high school teacher with a deep knowledge of American football, applies for the vacant coaching job at her school. She is following in the footsteps of her father, a well-known coach, but her ambition meets with ridicule from colleagues and her ex-husband, who doubt a woman belongs on the sidelines. She gets the position and inherits the Wildcats, a squad of unpolished and inexperienced players at Central High School. Earning the trust of the team and proving herself in a field dominated by men becomes her central struggle.

Goldie Hawn stars as Molly, with Swoosie Kurtz, Robyn Lively, Brandy Gold, James Keach and Jan Hooks among the credited cast of 26. Michael Ritchie directed from a screenplay by Ezra Sacks, with Anthea Sylbert producing. The comedy runs 106 minutes and was released in February 1986.

It is the tenth of the fifteen films Ritchie directed in chronological order, arriving between The Golden Child and The Couch Trip. It took about 26 million dollars worldwide. On IMDb it holds 6.1/10 from roughly 16,000 votes, while on TMDB it stands at 6.3/10 from 231 votes. A critics' rating of 4.4/10 from 20 reviews is noticeably lower than the audience scores, suggesting reviewers were harder on it than viewers were.