Scott Murphy is a former high-school football star who dreamt of being a professional football player. However, his dreams were shattered when he suffered a devastating injury during a game which cost him his shot at a college scholarship. After the incident, Scott lost hope and settled down in his small hometown as a farmer. One night, he falls into a coma after a car accident. During his coma, Scott is transported back in time to his senior year of high school, where he is given a second chance to make things right.
Scott goes back to his old life with a newfound wisdom of what he lost and what he can now regain. He goes back and tries to change his bad behaviors that kept him away from his football goals. He reconnects with his high-school sweetheart, learns from his mistakes as a student, and tries to rekindle his relationship with his father, which he destroyed as a teenager due to his football obsession. The ultimate goal for him during his time return back is to play the game that gave him so much joy without hurting himself.
Though he has been given another chance to play the game, he knows that he still must face the harsh reality of the present once he wakes up. Upon realizing that his homecoming game is the one that leads to his injury, he must choose between risking his future and his health to live his dream or accepting his reality and realizing that he has a good life beyond football.
The movie Touchback highlights the harsh realities of life and the pain of letting go of one’s dreams. The movie’s tagline “Second chances don’t come along often. But when they do, you have to take them” says it all. It explains the importance of accepting our reality while still dreaming big and not giving up on what we want out of life.