A few random bits of trivia to start. The baseball coach is Sam Crawford, another deadball era player in a Keaton film and quite a good one....he's in the Hall of Fame. The coaxswain that accidentally got drugged is Charlie Hall, a Laurel and Hardy/Hal Roach regular! Also agree the mother does look too young to be Keaton's Mom, as the actress was only ten years older than Keaton. Then again, she was old enough to be a Mom of a college freshman...it was Keaton who was too old.
In general, I think you guys are way too hard on this one, though I'll agree on a few points. As far as THE FRESHMAN, I think Keaton, after the financial disappointment of THE GENERAL, used THE FRESHMAN as inspiration for safer material, as sure enough, said Lloyd film was a big hit. The difference, and it's a big one, is Lloyd's character loves the girl but also wants to be the most popular guy in school while Keaton...he just loves the girl. I don't view one way better than the other, but two very different character types on display between the two. I won't be too hard on the girl, though. The speech Keaton gives at the beginning of the film makes him come across as a bit of a jerk. Praising academics is fine, but his superior attitude towards athletes, who are also also her friends, is off putting, and I don't blame her for ditching Keaton. Keaton trying sports is his way of showing her how far he'll try to redeem himself, and she's intuitive enough to realize this. She never got on Keaton's case for his academic skill and showed interest in his speech until he got a superior attitude towards athletes.
The fun of this film is Keaton messing up at sports. The irony is in being a bad athlete as a character in the film, he's showing what a good athlete he is in real life. The falls he takes, knocking down the hurdles, the slide into home, spinning around awkwardly with the discus, actually takes skill in it's own way and can be quite comical. As a baseball fan, I love his choked up batting stance trying to hit left handed when he looks natural right handed. I also love the way towards the end, all the sports he messes up with at the beginning he incorporates in the chase to save the girl, (which yes, can easily be explained away, I agree). Makes everything come full circle nicely. Oh, and I love the part where Keaton is being trampolined by that ladies window, biggest laugh I got in this film.
A good film overall, and the ending is my all-time favorite ending to a Keaton film....OK, tied with SHERLOCK, JR.
9/10