Here are the details of Spencer Paysinger’s real life pre-NFL career that All American has so far adjusted. Paysinger left the National Football League in 2017 after competing for the Miami Dolphins, New York Jets, and Carolina Panthers, as well as the New York Giants, who won a Super Bowl with them. Spencer, who had previously been following his talents in screenwriting, knew exactly what he wanted to do after football, unlike some professional sportsmen.
He created All American as a television series largely based on his football career, and with the aid of renowned producer Greg Berlanti, The CW ordered the project to series in 2018. Paysinger has a significant involvement with All American; in addition to producing the show, he also plays Assistant Coach Davis in some of the episodes. All American isn’t entirely authentic to the true story it is based on, even with Paysinger’s part in the series. Spencer’s requirement to play for Beverly High School rather than his alma mater was kept, but All American changed his name to Spencer James and went further.
The plot of Spencer James has changed over the course of All American’s three seasons and diverges from Paysinger’s own upbringing. There will surely be more changes as All American season 4 premieres on The CW in late 2021 and the storylines it launched. But this is how All American altered Spencer Paysinger’s real life prior to his NFL career.
What Football Positions Spencer Played In High School
Spencer Paysinger’s two-way play during high school helped him become one of the top football prospects in his region. Paysinger served as a safety and a wide receiver on the offensive and defensive sides of the ball, respectively. His performance on both sides helped him win the Ocean League player of the year award as a senior. Spencer James, however, has been an even more adaptable player for All American reasons. He was initially known for his receiving abilities, but in addition to handling some kickoff return responsibilities, he has also played defensive back for Beverly. Later on, All American altered the genuine narrative once more by having Spencer James transition to the position of running back.
All American Changes Where Spencer Played Football
Spencer Paysinger attended Beverly Hills High School for his entire time in high school. He resided in South Central Los Angeles but commuted daily to Beverly Hills for education. After playing for at least two seasons as a Beverly Hills Norman, he received his diploma from Beverly in 2006. But Spencer’s school now has a dynamic element thanks to All American. Spencer James is first introduced to viewers while playing for South Crenshaw High School, but he quickly switches to playing for Beverly Hills during his junior year. However, All American’s second season closes with James promising to play for Crenshaw once more after winning the state championship. Spencer Paysinger never experienced this, despite the fact that this is another deviation from the original story depicted in All American. Given James’ story, it makes sense to change, but it obviously changes his chances of playing in the NFL.
How Spencer Got Into Beverly Is Different In All American
Spencer James is first recruited to play at Beverly by Coach Baker, who hopes he can help the team win a state championship at the beginning of All American. Spencer James had to move in with Baker’s family in Beverly Hills in order to pull this off and be able to attend the school by claiming to be in the correct zip code. Spencer Paysinger travels to Beverly in a very different way in the true story All American is based on.
In actual life, Beverly Hills High School has a lengthy relationship with Spencer Paysinger’s family. When they were little, his father and uncles were given permission to visit, and after graduating from college, they moved back to Beverly to work as coaches and teachers. Spencer Paysinger was also permitted to go as Beverly employed several members of his family, and this was done as part of a multicultural programme. As Paysinger never had to share housing with another family in order to attend Beverly, this is a big difference from All American. Once more, this alteration fits All American’s depiction of Paysinger’s life because Spencer develops crucial relationships through this and fights to balance his two halves of his existence.
All American Alters Spencer’s Relationship With His Dad
Spencer James’ connection with his father and how it affected both his on- and off-field life was a significant component of All American. Before he returned to Crenshaw, a major plot in the first season of All American concerned what had become of his father and who he actually was. Then, in All American season 2, Spencer’s father was given the opportunity to coach his son for the first time when he was appointed the head coach at Crenshaw and recruited Spencer to join his team. Spencer’s father had cancer, which All American later discovered, and he passed away soon after. Spencer briefly gave up football as a result, and he also grew closer to his half-brother Darnell, although none of this actually occurred to Spencer Paysinger in real life.
Donald Paysinger, the father of Spencer Paysinger, attended high school with him. In actuality, Donald was a football assistant coach at Beverly Hills High School before taking over as head coach after Spencer graduated. Spencer’s uncle Carter Paysinger, who had coached for the school for 19 years, left for another employment, which led to his hiring. Fortunately, Donald is still with us today and continues to play a role in Spencer Paysinger’s life. Donald Paysinger and Spencer Paysinger have a close friendship in real life, and Donald Paysinger continued to instruct football as recently as 2017.
Spencer Paysinger Wasn’t Shot In High School
The repercussions of Spencer James being shot in his right shoulder during season 2 have been a recurring plot in All American. James’ football career was threatened by the incident, but he seemed to fully recover. Spencer once more lost sensation in his right arm as the season 2 finale came to a close, and All American season 3 went into further detail about this. Eventually, it became clear that Coop was partly to blame for Spencer’s ongoing arm problems. Only after telling Coop what was going on during his senior year did James finally move past this issue. Spencer Paysinger did not, however, actually have to engage in this conflict. This is a typical instance of All American making Spencer’s route to future success more difficult because his football career was never nearly ended by a gang-related killing.
All American Has Spencer Going To A Different College
Additionally, All American has altered a lot of aspects of Spencer’s college recruitment. To begin with, Spencer James is one of the greatest prospects in the nation, not just in California. He was recruited by several schools and was the 57th best player in the country prior to his injury during All American season 2. But in the case of Spencer Paysinger, this was just not the case. Despite being a standout player in his division, some scouting services only rated him as a two-star recruit. Despite the fact that Spencer James’ recruitment suffered after his injury, he was still an all-around highly respected prospect.
Spencer James was first primarily targeted by UCLA by the colleges that recruited him, according to All American. Prior to and after his accident, a number of different institutions expressed interest in him; some even offered to pay him under the table to attend. However, the show hasn’t yet set Spencer on the course to attend the same college as Spencer Paysinger did. Paysinger picked Oregon over Arizona State, Boise State, Colorado, and Wyoming and spent five years as a Duck (after redshirting his first year). Spencer Paysinger’s pre-NFL career hasn’t been followed by All American thus far, and season 3 pushed him in a new direction after adding a different college to the mix than Oregon.
That being said, there is probably a good reason why UCLA, rather than Oregon, will be the focus of Spencer’s college career. Paysinger spent his final two seasons as a player at Oregon, where Chip Kelly served as the team’s head coach. Together, they achieved remarkable success as they reached the BCS Championship game and fell to Auburn 22-19 in Paysinger’s final season. But after a brief stay in the NFL, Chip Kelly is now the head coach at UCLA and no longer serves as the coach at Oregon. Since Kelly appeared in season 2 of All American, Spencer’s life has probably changed from Oregon to UCLA due to his ongoing relationship with Paysinger.
Spencer Paysinger Didn’t Win A State Championship
Early on in the programme, All American once again altered the genuine narrative of Spencer Paysinger by having Spencer James win a state championship. Paysinger played high school football well, but his record didn’t include a state championship for California. Spencer James and Beverly took home the title as juniors, but Paysinger’s squad fell far short of winning the title. The Beverly Hills Normans had a much stronger season in his senior year, going 9-1-2 overall. Unfortunately, their lone defeat came in the playoff tournament’s second game. All American has Spencer James on the verge of winning his second championship when season 4 debuts, although Spencer Paysinger didn’t actually win a state championship.
Spencer Paysinger Wasn’t An All-American
The plaudits that Spencer James received resulted in another alteration to the genuine narrative of All American. He and Jordan Baker were formally recognised as All-American high school football players by All American season three. Spencer Paysinger, on the other hand, didn’t get the same accolades for his work as a senior. Instead, the top award given to Paysinger was that of Ocean League player of the year. Given the status of All American, it is not surprising that Spencer James has added this to his list of accomplishments.
