Oscar season is upon us, and I for one am getting sick of it. But even I can’t escape the movie hoopla.

However, since I haven’t seen many of the Oscar-nominated films, I thought it would be easier for me to showcase those often forgotten — the sports films.

Now, I’ll admit, I have what some would call an “acquired” taste for movies — others would probably call my taste “poor,” but that’s another story. So when you read this list, just keep in mind that these are my favorite sports movies, not the best or most critically-acclaimed.

You may not like my choices, but that’s why this is my list and not yours.

5. “Varsity Blues” — It’s not often that I’ll put a movie produced by the not-so-music channel MTV on any “tops” list, but “Varsity Blues” is not your typical movie.

Anyone who has read “Friday Night Lights” or actually been to Texas during high school football season knows that this story is not that far from reality. While picking James Van Der Beek to play Jonathon Moxon, the second-string quarterback turned top star, may not have been the best choice, producers could have done a lot worse.

Thankfully, Van Der Beek shed the awkward Dawson persona from “Dawson’s Creek” and played a believable Texan high schooler. But Jon Voight steals the show as the bullheaded, cheat-to-win coach Bud Kilmer. By the end of the movie, even I hated Kilmer and wanted to see him kicked out of town.

This movie has quickly fallen into one of my yearly traditions before the start of the high school football season and will probably stay there for the foreseeable future.

4. “Major League” — Maybe it’s my love for anything Charlie Sheen or Bob Uecker, or maybe it’s the fact that this movie is so funny that drives me to watch it whenever possible. I may be the only person alive who actually loved the sequel, but you can never go wrong with the original.

Tom Berenger’s role as washed up catcher Jake Taylor was less than inspiring, but Sheen’s Rick “Wild Thing” Vaughn and Weslie Snipes’ Willie Mays Hayes made up for it in the end.

3. “Days of Thunder” — Now did you really expect me not to put this movie on the list? Just the fact that it has anything to do with NASCAR makes the movie an easy Top 5.

Cole Trickle (Tom Cruise) draws so many comparisons to current NASCAR superstar Jeff Gordon it is quite scary. But watching the not-so-realistic battles of Trickle, Rowdy Burns (Michael Rooker) and Russ Wheeler (Cary Elwes) on the track is what makes this movie.

2. “Caddyshack” — Simply put, this is the greatest comedy ever. The fact that Caddyshack is also a sports movie makes it that much better.

Every time someone tries to tell me this movie isn’t about sports, I just point to the fact that an average PGA Tour professional has watched this movie 22 times.

This movie has so many great characters, it’s hard to single out one — except for Bill Murray. I think every weekend golfer slips into Murray’s Carl the Groundskeeper every now and then when out on the course.

1. “Hoop Dreams” — Documentaries always get a bad wrap, but almost no one can disagree with this film’s greatness.

The film, which originally ran on PBS, follows two athletes, Williams Gates and Arthur Agee, in their quest to reach greatness on the basketball courts. For over six years, camera crews followed Gates and Agee as they tried to live out their dream.

But what makes this documentary so much better has nothing to do with basketball. Throughout the film, we find both Gates and Agee trying to overcome the hardships they and their families face in the predominately-poor south side of Chicago.

If this movie is ever put on DVD, it will become a tradition like “Varsity Blues.”

Matt Duval is a junior in journalism and The Lantern sports editor. He can be reached at [email protected].