'Last Chance U' Season 5: There's hope for Laney Eagles as long as they have coach John Beam

There's something about John Beam that evokes a sense of pride, a need to win and a massive surge of inspiration. It's just him, the coach of the Laney Eagles who, in Netflix's final season of 'Last Chance U' makes an impression and earns the respect of not just his players and his family but also the audience catching up with the series. 

In the pilot episode, Beam talks to the team about them being out there to win. He addresses them as brothers, the family code runs deep and while he's a strict disciplinarian on the field, there's also the relaxed and cheeky humor that surfaces and is sprinkled with generous doses of care towards his players. The man is 40 years into the coaching profession. He wears his heart on his sleeve and is probably more animated than the players themselves during a game.

One of the instances sees the Eagles score a touchdown over the Pirates and Beam could be seen celebrating wildly along the sidelines. He might not be the football coach wearing a Tom Ford and watching with a quiet look, rather he is kitted up in the dark green tracksuit and could be seen motivating and instructing his players during the scrimmage on the field. Beam, like any coach, hates losing and he makes no excuses when Laney's 2019 season wasn't up to the mark. 

"It pisses you off when you are losing," he says, and admits, "we struggled this year". "I have to do a better job, and that's what I'll do." Now that may seem to be the line most heard as the season ends and reflection kicks in but this is Beam and that's his Eagles. Beam is a straight-shooter. In the final episode, he outlines to each of his star players how things might go for them in the days to come. Some are told this at the end while a few get an inkling of what's in store for them.

Beam has a decorated history. The current head football coach and athletic director for Laney College have been instrumental in coaching 12 players in the NFL. Laney College has played two Bowl games and has a 90% success rate of scholarship and transfer rate of his players. Prior to this, he was coach of the Skyline High School for 17 years where he saw the team win 15 League Championships and 11 Section Championships.

Laney's were a killer outfit in 2018, but they weren't themselves in the next season. And Beam as a coach makes an honest assessment of his players and the games. What you can credit him and the Eagles for in the docuseries is the sheer honesty they bring to the table. And as long as Beam is around, there's always hope for the Eagles.

'Last Chance U' premieres on July 28 on Netflix.