Elroy 'Crazylegs' Hirsch stars as himself in this biopic. Joan Vohs plays his loyal wife, and Lloyd Nolan plays his high-school coach and narrates. And the players of the Los Angeles Rams play themselves.
It's not unknown for people to play themselves in their biographical movies. Jackie Robinson did, Babe Ruth made a career out of playing the Bambino, and Audie Murphy highlighted his career by playing himself. Hirsch had a minor career as a movie actor about this time. Director Francis D. Lyon keeps his dialogue short and moves the camera off him quickly so he doesn't have to challenge his acting abilities, save near the end, when he gives an inspirational locker-room speech to his team mates.
In fact the movie seems to be mostly clips of Hirsch accepting awards, and newsreel shots of his gridiron accomplishments, with more narrating by in-movie sports commenters. It's not surprising, therefore, that it was nominated for a Best Editing Oscar, or that Lyon was the director; he had begun as an editor, and won an Oscar before he turned to directing.
