The Boys of Riverside

Written by Thomas Fuller

In 2021, the football team at the California School for the Deaf in Riverside, a state-run school with only 168 high school students, was having an undefeated season. The Boys of Riverside looks back at the historic seasons in which a group of underestimated boys and their superhero advocate coach, Keith Adams, a deaf former athlete himself chased history.

It follows the personal journeys of their dynamic deaf head coach, and a student who spent the majority of the season sleeping in his father’s car in the Target parking lot. It tells the story of a fiercely committed player who literally played through a broken leg in order not to miss a crucial game, as well as myriad other heart-wrenching and uplifting narratives of players who found common purpose. Through their eyes, Fuller reveals a portrait of high school athletics, inspiring camaraderie, and deafness in America.