QB1: Beyond the Lights

The Machine" tells the story of the 2017 Long Beach Poly Jackrabbits, and their journey to carry on the tradition of the Poly football legends who've come before them. Coached by Superbowl champion Antonio Pierce, the one-time powerhouse program is still one of the top producers of NFL talent but has become a perennial underdog. In a field dominated by million dollar private schools and sports academies, Poly must fight to stay relevant as an underfunded public school. "The Machine" emerged from 5 months of unprecedented intimate access to the players, coaches, and community surrounding the most storied high school football program in American History. Coach Pierce is joined by NFL legends Lavar Arrington, and TJ Houshmandzadeh, to lead roster of players which includes the most highly recruited quarterback/wide-receiver duo in the nation, alongside kids struggling to use the game as a way to escape legacies of crime and violence.