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Hayden Fox, the curmudgeonly coach of Minnesota State University's Screaming Eagles football team, tries to navigate his way through the sports world, fatherhood and family life without dropping the ball.
1989
Kelly tells Hayden she had a date with a faculty member, and he wants to know who.
Kelly's return to Minnesota for college awakens Hayden's paternal instincts, disrupting his relationship with Christine
Christine demands Hayden be truthful with Kelly about their relationship.
Hayden detests Kelly's new boyfriend.
A losing streak makes Hayden unpleasant company for Christine.
Hayden suspends Luther for 30 days for gambling when he bets against the team and wins a steak at the Touchdown Club; but Luther think he has been fired, and takes another job.
Hayden plans a quiet birthday celebration for Kelly, who invites Stuart.
Christine is seized by an uncontrollable urge to get a look at Hayden's ex-wife, who's come up for Parents' Weekend.
Hayden consoles a wealthy alumnus' widow to secure a substantial donation.
Hayden feels threatened when Christine dates another.
Although Hayden needs a victory in his last game for a winning season, he may be forced to bench his star player for skipping practice.
The poetry of football is turned into ballet by Kelly's dance instructor, who envisions a pas de deux with technical advisor Hayden.
Anti-fun Riley Pringle of the Conduct Committee joins Hayden in supervising Dauber's season-ending party.
1989
Hayden dislikes art; Christine dislikes his attitude.
Hayden feuds with the girls' basketball coach, Dauber's new flame.
Hayden unwittingly splits Kelly and Stuart when he reluctantly accepts a dinner invitation and enjoys the floor show supplied by the bickering couple.
Hayden runs away to protest Kelly's wedding to Stuart.
Game pressure gives Hayden a facial tic before a national telecast.
Christine fixes Luther up with a friend.
Bickering Kelly and Stuart invade Christine and Hayden's intimate weekend.
After Hayden convinces Luther to invest in the Touchdown Club, an opening night mishap threatens their partnership and their friendship when Luther is forced to call Hayden after a robbery.
When Hayden secretly recruits a top quarterback, Christine blabs to a sportscaster.
Hayden plans a victory party for an anticipated award.
When Hayden objects to Kelly spending all her time in Wisconsin with her new family, Kelly forces her father to meet her in-laws.
Hayden meets his idols at a conference, but his dreams of swimming with the big fishes drown in a sea of anonymity.
Coach Watkins gets revenge on Hayden when he mans a booth at the college carnival.
Hayden believes the new president of Minnesota State is a woman with whom he once had a fling.
Hayden seeks Luther's companionship while Christine works on the weekend, and while she is away nearly destroys her apartment.
Hayden enrolls his team in the academic class he's been required to teach, and sets out to make it ""the easiest history class in history.""
Hayden loses Luther's prized bird while the assistant coach vacations.
Hayden is pleased when Kelly volunteers to fill in for his vacationing secretary.
When Hayden refuses to accompany Christine to the opera, she asks her old flame, and a predictably jealous Hayden follows them in disguise.
Hayden impresses Judy's parents when he saves their pet poodle.
1992
Hayden wins his first football game of the year and proposes to Christine on his new live television show.
Dauber's relationship with his girlfriend Judy is threatened when he becomes a Big Brother to an 8-year-old.
Hayden hires Kelly's roommate to act as his daughter when Kelly refuses to attend his Father of the Year banquet.
Luther complains to Hayden about the lack of recognition for his contribution to the team's success -- then must face the media when the team loses.
Howard's wife Shirley comes to work in the athletic department as his temporary secretary and drives him crazy; Luther and Dauber fight to keep their favorite cereal alive.
Hayden's enthusiasm for fund-raising threatens Luther's romance with wealthy widow Mrs. Rizzendough.
Luther reveals his true opinion of Christine following a close brush with death.
Johnny Unitas, Dick Butkus and Bubba Smith upset Luther when they host Hayden's bachelor party.
Christine's plans for a perfect wedding go from bad to worse after Luther sets her wedding dress on fire.
Hayden and Christine marry in her childhood home.
Hayden's team plays in the Patriot Bowl under horrendous conditions.
Hayden's and Dauber's gifts to the women in their lives accidentally get switched -- and Judy thinks Dauber is proposing to her when she unwraps Christine's ring.
Hayden is set to star in a coffee commercial with Christine, but his part is recast; Luther decides to write a screenplay.
Hayden tries to restrain his jealousy over Christine's on-air romance with her new co-star in the coffee commercial.
Hayden is thrilled when Kelly receives a large check from her ex-husband, until he learns her plans for the money.
Hayden and Christine impulsively decide to get married while spending the weekend with Luther in Las Vegas.
Hayden and Christine are driven crazy when Howard and Shirley decide to become their best friends.
One of Hayden's former football players is forced into early retirement because of a surprising medical problem, despite his very real knee injuries; the real reason is cancer.
Luther begins questioning the relationship when his romance with Lorraine heats up.
Judy threatens to quit coaching at Minnesota State when Hayden plays one last practical joke on her during an important ceremony.
Hayden tries to convince Christine that she does not need a face-lift to improve her chances in a job search.
Hayden attempts to recruit Tyler Roberts, the country's top high-school football player from Note Dame.
Hayden and Christine's third attempt to get married includes plans for a wedding in the woods in a church that's due for demolition.
1991
Hayden's photograph appears on the cover of Sports Illustrated after his team is ranked in the top 20.
Hayden tries to console Kelly, who would rather tell it to Christine.
Convinced that Hayden deliberately sold him a broken-down truck, Luther reports Hayden to a TV consumer reporter.
Hayden pressures Kelly to date his star player, whom she finds very attractive -- until he tells her he is gay.
Hayden grudgingly agrees to go house hunting with Christine, then buys a house without consulting her.
Hayden receives an oddball inheritance from an acquaintance.
Hayden and Luther spend an excruciating trip snowbound in a cramped train compartment after Luther trades in their plane tickets following a dream about an air crash.
Hayden regrets his honesty when he tells Christine he hates her friend.
The call of the loon forebodes more than Hayden expected when he agrees to speak at Burleigh's Fraternal Order of the Loon.
Hayden is beaten before he plays his first bowl game when he learns the opposing coach is his former mentor.
Hayden halts pre-game hoopla after a star player is injured in a bizarre limo accident.
Hayden vies with Watkins for a benefactor's favor and her donations by leading an exercise class for seniors.
Hayden reveals secrets about his ex-wife Beth when her new fiancé asks him for advice.
A careless comment results in a food fight when Dauber moves into Luther's apartment building.
Kelly is the one surprised at Grandpa Rosebrock's 90th birthday party when Stuart arrives with his new girlfriend.
When an arrogant chauvinist millionaire insults his girlfriend in public, Hayden and Christine come to her defense.
After a one-night stand with Hayden's 60-year-old secretary, Luther is too ashamed to face her the next morning.
Christine sells Hayden's Johnny Unitas-autographed football shoes; Luther catches the biggest pike in the lake only to lose it.
Kelly falls for a correspondent stationed in Bangkok; Luther is upset because he thinks he's shrinking.
A network job offer poses Christine a dilemma: to stay in Minnesota with Hayden or move to New York.
Hayden and Christine have conflicting commitments when a network premiere party is scheduled the same night as Hayden's sports banquet, at which he hopes to receive the coveted Curly O'Brien award. Out of the confusion arise a pair of resolutions: Christine decides to stay in Minnesota, while Hayden decides to move to New York to be with Christine.
The stress of a long-distance relationship troubles Hayden; Luther and Dauber refinish Hayden's game-room floor. Finally the Hayden-Christine problem is resolved when she loses her network job and returns to Minnesota.
Craig T. Nelson
Coach Hayden Fox
Jerry Van Dyke
Luther Van Dam
Shelley Fabares
Christine Armstrong
Bill Fagerbakke
Dauber Dybinski
1990
Hayden, ecstatic about his team being ranked top-20 for the first time, meets Christine's mother, then is shattered when his star player Bo is hurt and put on the injured list.
When Hayden has to miss a game because of a bad tooth, Luther must coach via phone instructions from him.
Hayden gets jealous when the university president woos a basketball coach from Boston with promises of grandiose perks.
Hayden reluctantly allows archrival Watkins to sit in on his poker night.
Hayden promises to stay with a bedridden Christine, rather than attend a long-awaited team victory celebration.
Hayden and Luther get stranded out of town the night Hayden is to escort Christine to an awards banquet in her honor.
Hayden forsakes football with the guys to meet Christine's antique-dealer friend.
Even at a victory party, and with Elaine trying to seduce him, Hayden remains depressed over his breakup with Christine.
Christine wants all her belongings out of Hayden's house, and Luther might move in next door.
Irritable over his breakup with Christine, Hayden attends a self-help group.
Dateless for a charity ball, Hayden flashes back four years to when he first met Christine, at the same affair.
Grinch Hayden's ex-wife unexpectedly shows up at his holiday party with a gift idea that will make all his Christmases merry: she helps him decide to reunite with Christine.
When Dauber finally graduates after eight years, Hayden promotes him to full-time coach, and their relationship changes.
Hayden concocts a wild tale to keep a promised $10 million donation from going to the basketball department instead.
Christine persuades Luther to have lunch with the reconciling best friend who stole his girl 37 years ago.
When Luther's old friend steals his girlfriend again, Hayden and Peter try to spare Luther's feelings by hiding the fact.
Hayden tries to discourage a scrawny, unpopular student who wants to try out for the football team, and Christine schools him in the art of gaining popularity.
Whiny, well-meaning Stuart nearly drives Hayden to murder on a ski trip with Christine and Kelly.
On his first trip to Las Vegas, athletic director Howard wants to sow some wild oats.
When Hayden discovers Christine's salary dwarfs his own, he decides to make extra cash as a spokesperson for an athletic supporter company.
Hayden reunites Luther and his long-lost father.
Cash-poor Hayden buys Christine's engagement ring from a cut-rate jeweler/dentist.
1996
When Christine and baby Timothy both become ill, an exhausted Hayden has too much to do while preparing for an important game.
When Hayden passes on the chance to write a memoir of his failures with the Breakers, Luther makes a play for writing it himself -- without Hayden's involvement -- then discovers the topic is living with losing.
When Doris brings in a gorgeous Brazilian soccer player to play kicker for the Breakers, Hayden is skeptical of his talent, while Luther becomes suspicious of his intentions towards Doris.
Hayden's plans for an evening of dinner and dancing go awry when Christine resists leaving their baby at home.
Hayden and Christine ask the Burleighs to become Tim's legal guardians, but the eccentric couple's enthusiasm causes the Foxes to reconsider their request.
Dauber's fairy-tale romance with his new girlfriend is jeopardized when he begins to suspect that Hayden doesn't approve.
When Luther and Doris plan to get married, Howard plans a huge televised half-time wedding for them during the Breakers vs. Niners game. Unfortunately, Luther's new obsession with Doris' money causes some problems.
When Hayden and Christine made plans to celebrate Christmas in Minnesota, they never believed the Breakers had any chance of making it to the playoffs. But fate is with the team and it looks like Hayden will play the Bills in Buffalo instead of playing Santa to Tim on his first Christmas.
On their way to face the Buffalo Bills in a wild-card game, Luther's love of chicken wings saddles the Breakers with a severe case of food poisoning.
In this very special episode which analogizes nine years of relationships between friends and family, Dauber believes he is contacted by aliens, and he considers leaving the Breakers, Orlando and Earth.
Howard and Shirley give Timothy a doll, but Luther feels the boy should have more masculine influences.
When Hayden's former gardener Kenny is fired by the Breakers, the guilt-ridden coach writes him a glowing job recommendation. But Hayden comes to regret that generosity when his words earn Kenny a job as his personal bodyguard.
When Doris invites the whole gang to spend Valentine's Day weekend at a ski resort she's thinking about buying, Hayden helps Christine conquer her fear of the slopes. Meanwhile, Dauber runs into his ex-fiancée Judy, which stirs some unresolved feelings. The gang heads off to a ski resort, where Hayden and Christine go their separate ways after an argument and Dauber spends his time trying to hide from Judy after spotting her in a grocery store.
When Hayden, Luther, Dauber and Howard decide to celebrate "Man Week" in the Florida Everglades, Doris, Christine and Shirley decide to take a vacation of their own. Meanwhile, having allowed Luther to plan their trip, the men wind up in swamp mud with an alligator.
Luther plans to "invest" his life savings at an Elvis memorabilia auction in Las Vegas, but he gets into a heated bidding war with The Drew Carey Show's Mimi. In the end, Luther and Mimi go from bitter rivals to dance partners in a wild, Elvis-inspired dream sequence set to music.
Hayden recalls how Tim got his name as a result of the coach's mishap with a hospital clerk, which led to a baby-naming contest sponsored by an antagonistic sportswriter.
As a reward for the Breakers' successful season, Doris gives the coaches a session with her psychic, but Luther is troubled by the woman's prediction and convinces himself that a defensive tackle Hayden's trying to sign is out to kill him.
Hayden's insecurity gets the better of him when an obnoxious mother boasts that her baby girl -- who's just a few days older than Tim -- can already walk and talk. So the coach tries to bring Tim up to speed.
Doris promotes Luther, leaving Hayden to find a new defensive coordinator, a job he thinks would be perfect for Dick Butkus -- until the former linebacker shows up and starts taking over.
Skeptical Hayden warns Christine not to trust the new neighbors.
In the first episode of the three-part series finale, Doris offers Hayden a 17-million-dollar package to stay with the Breakers for 10 years. When Hayden learns there are other teams in the league that want to lure him away, he and Christine plan to sneak off to the cabin to think things over
Hayden, Luther and Dauber return to Minnesota State, where they reminisce about their college-coaching years and see some familiar faces. Later, at the lake with Christine and Tim, Hayden shares his vision of the family's future -- an idea she quickly embraces.
Hayden, Luther and Dauber return to Minnesota State, where they reminisce about their college-coaching years and see some familiar faces. Later, at the lake with Christine and Tim, Hayden shares his vision of the family's future—an idea she quickly embraces.
1993
Hayden is rattled as he tries to nurse his new team to victory, even as Christine announces she wants to have a baby.
Hayden stands up in court for Luther's defendant dog Quincy, who bit the MSU bandleader; Christine dozes during Hayden's advances.
Hayden's overactive ego has him convinced that Christine's success is not her own doing.
Luther and Hayden have vastly different views on the reasons for the team's success.
Kelly's desire to work in New York upsets Hayden.
Hayden and Dauber buy motorcycles.
Luther, feeling a bit lonely, befriends a boy (Smollett) in need of a father
Christine gingerly suggests that she and Hayden visit a fertility clinic.
Kelly, having taken a bite out of the Big Apple, comes home for Thanksgiving a changed woman -- one that Hayden doesn't particularly like.
The playbook falls into enemy hands on the eve of Hayden's biggest game.
On the day of the Pioneer Bowl, an accident puts Luther in the hospital with a concussion -- but the team wins the National Championship anyway.
Luther makes a nuisance of himself after tracing his family tree and learning of a large group of Van Dams living in the area.
Hayden is rattled when he and Christine agree to watch an infant for the weekend.
Luther is offered the job of head football coach at nearby small Aberdeen college.
Luther is embarrassed to confess his new job: managing a miniature golf course.
Hayden begins wearing a special device to increase his sperm count. As a Valentine's gift he goes on Christine's TV show, where his special device leaks on camera.
Kelly can't attend when Hayden goes to New York to receive the Coach of the Year award.
While Howard and Hayden are away at a conference, Shirley confides in Christine that she's become attracted to another man.
The Screaming Eagles try to recruit the nations top QB. The players father roomed with Haden in college. After a one on one conversation with the blue chips QB, the player admits he only plays ball to please his eager father whose own football dreams were crushed by an injury. Haden convinces to give the young perspective time to decide his own life direction.
Fed up with trying to increase his fertility, Hayden looks into getting a sperm donor -- quarterback Troy Aikman.
An old girlfriend's visit rekindles Dauber's feelings and jeopardizes his relationship with Judy.
Christine goes fishing with the guys and catches the biggest fish.
Hayden and Christine have lukewarm reactions to Luther's outrageously uninhibited date.
In this episode Judy and three of the other woman's coaches challenge Hayden, Dauber, Howard and Luther to a game of golf with the winner getting the best athletic parking spots. The only problem for the guys is that Luther is a terrible player, after some argument Hayden finally relents to give Luther a shot against the woman. The men are poised to win on a put by Hayden, but he misses.
On his 49th birthday, Hayden wants to drive a race car.
This is an unusual greatest moments episode. The format is an interview with Hayden about his life and work at Minnesota State. In the first of this two part series Mary Hart interviews Hayden about the beginnings of his relationship with Christine. Another unusual part of this episode is its absence of a laugh track, leaving the jokes to push themselves.
In this second of the two-part interview with Mary Hart, the show explores Hayden's relationships with the other significant people in his life (i.e. Luther, Dauber, Howard, and his daughter). This two-part series is essentially a greatest moments episode from the first six seasons.
1994
Hayden is offered a position at an unnamed pro team. He goes to New York to interview for the job. After first finding out about the offer, he doesn't tell Dauber or Luther. Finally he does and everyone becomes excited about a future in the NFL. Unfortunately Hayden is not offered the job. The show ends with Christine and Hayden discussing their unrelenting ambition that leaves them restless in Minnesota.
Hayden hires an image consultant who sets out to make him a superstar.
Hayden's image consultant Susan Miller gets underfoot when he coaches the team.
In this Dauber centered episode, Judy returns from Romania after a trip with the woman's basketball team. Dauber is exited to see her, as it's the longest time they've ever been apart (one month). When Judy arrives, she tells Dauber that she had an affair with a Romanian man named Andre. Judy doesn't feels she can spend her life with Dauber, she breaks their two-year engagement.
Luther spends more time with Ruthanne and less with Hayden.
Hayden and Christine have a major marital blowup over her seeming ""impregnability"" and the consequent mechanical nature of their recent love life. Luther gets into an unbelievable car deal with an elderly woman.
Against Hayden's advice, Christine attends a bachelorette party thrown by Ruthanne and gets into trouble.
Hayden blames Christine for his sexist attitude toward an attractive co-worker.
Cuts in the non-football athletic budget force Hayden into a televised debate.
Carter gives Bill Jennings an audition tape of one of his beautiful broadcasting students. Carter intends to replace Christine with a young female host to "freshen up the show." Carter's plan backfires as Jennings decides to replace him instead of Christine. In the midst of Hayden's celebration on Carter's firing, Carter shows up to beg Christine to help him get his job back. Christine agrees and the next morning talks with the Jennings to help Carter. In the midst of the meeting Carter bursts into the meeting and with Christine's aid he gets his job back.
An opposing player is badly hurt after Hayden encourages rough play.
Just before a big bowl game, a rumor breaks out that Hayden may be taking a job in the pros.
Luther and Ruthanne try to help each other shed bad habits.
Hayden refuses to go quietly when Christine insists that he head off his snoring problem with a trip to a sleep therapy clinic.
Hayden and Christine agree to work out their marital problems via an anonymous ""encounter weekend"" for couples, but the entire process breaks down for Hayden once Howard and Shirley Burleigh join the group.
A letter from a European prospect inspires Hayden to go on an international recruiting trip -- to a country that's under martial law.
Hayden refuses to admit that a middle-aged prospect might be too old to play on the team, and becomes his biggest supporter.
A Valentine's Day dinner gives three couples heartburn when Hayden's efforts to fix up a lovelorn Dauber entirely miss their mark.
Hayden tries to befriend former Dallas Cowboys coach Jimmy Johnson -- but his efforts go to the dogs when Johnson's Super Bowl ring is eaten by Luther's dog.
Luther feels left out when Hayden and Christine are invited to New York for a dinner honoring Frank Gifford.
When Hayden's daughter Kelly brings home new boyfriend Peter, Hayden is appalled to learn that Peter is the same age as Hayden.
Kelly and Dauber decide to keep their relationship a secret from Hayden, but fate throws a monkey wrench into their plans.
Luther risks losing agent Art Hibke by making a self-arranged promotional appearance without telling Art -- and then refusing to pay his commission, which leads to a crazed dental drilling; Dauber tries a new image.
Hayden and Christine go on a Caribbean cruise to get away from it all, but can't seem to steer clear of a wealthy eccentric, who makes a surprising offer.
Hayden is tempted by an offer to coach a professional team, but fears that its eccentric owner would make all the big decisions herself.
1995
Hayden leaves Minnesota for a new job as coach of an NFL team in Orlando, Florida. When he arrives, he finds that the team's owner has a game plan of her own.
Hayden tries to win over both Doris and the press while readying the Breakers for their first game.
Luther bites off more than he can chew when he moves into a new apartment -- in a seniors-only community -- and three women compete for his attentions.
Hayden and Christine decide to try adoption but learn that their ages may complicate the process; a new secretary puts Luther and Dawber under her spell.
A pregnant women considers the Foxes as prospective adoptive parents for her baby; Luther and Dauber try to win over the rest of the Breakers' coaching staff.
The Breakers' prospect for winning games seem bleak until Hayden's star quarterback from Minnesota State shows an interest in joining the team.
After Doris fires the hostile host (Bakay) of her TV station's post-game show, she surprises Hayden by taking Luther's suggestion for a replacement: Christine.
Hayden regrets sponsoring Luther's harebrained investment in ""Turtle World"" when he learns that the animals featured in the attraction are dying in captivity.
Luther muzzles his true feelings about the death of his beloved dog, Quincy, until Doris offers him some advice.
Hayden and Luther try to iron out their differences over Luther's relationship with Doris. Meanwhile, in spite of the team's losing season, the coaching staff perks up.
Hayden fumes when the Burleighs come for a surprise visit and then extend their stay.
While Hayden waffles over helping Howard search for a new job, the coaches see a window of opportunity for scoring their first win of the season.
While Hayden's priority is the Breakers' first game of the season, Doris is concerned with re-signing a handsome washout (Wahlheim) so he can model a line of swimwear endorsed by the team -- and television commentators focus on the team's new sex symbol during a game.
Hayden loses his appetite when Christine invites soon-to-be-fired player Matt Luba over for dinner.
The father of the unborn baby whom Hayden and Christine plan to adopt comes back into Julie's life.
Hayden must confront his inept gardener when all the plants in the yard start to die; but when Hayden fires him, he gets a chilly reception from Luther, who thinks the daffy worker deserved a second chance.
Christine needs to cheer up Hayden after a doctor connects his diminished sex drive to "male menopause."
Hayden rallies support for the team after Doris decides to move the Breakers to Los Angeles.
Dauber turns a deaf ear to Hayden's advice while choosing a new car, and winds up with a model that he can't afford.
When Luther's pet monkey bites Hayden, he, Howard and the rest of the coaching staff are quarantined for fear of an outbreak of some kind of "lethal monkey virus."
When Luther burns himself at Hayden's barbecue, he skewers his host with a multimillion-dollar lawsuit for negligence.
Hayden kicks himself for agreeing to coach at a football "fantasy camp," but Luther and Dauber can't wait to have their team go up against his in the final game.
Luther gets a shot at impressing Doris's high-class friends when he claims to be an expert hunter.
Hayden fears he'll look like a dummy if he fumbles the Breakers' first-choice pick in the NFL draft. Cameos include Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and receiver Keyshawn Johnson.
Adoption complications develop when Julie's father returns.
