Benched (Modern Family)

"Benched"
Modern Family episode
Eric Lange in the role of the hot-tempered basketball team coach
Episode no.	Season 1 Episode 20
Directed by	Chris Koch
Written by	Danny Zuker
Production code	1ARG20
Original air date	April 14, 2010
Guest appearance(s)
Justin Kirk (Charlie Bingham) Eric Lange (Coach Stupak)
Season 1 episodes
2009–2010 "Pilot" "The Bicycle Thief" "Come Fly With Me" "The Incident" "Coal Digger" "Run for Your Wife" "En Garde" "Great Expecations" "Fizbo" "Undeck the Halls" "Up All Night" "Not in My House" "Fifteen Percent" "Moon Landing" "My Funky Valentine" "Fears" "Truth Be Told" "Starry Night" "Game Changer" "Benched" "Travels with Scout" "Airport 2010" "Hawaii" "Family Portrait"   Season 2 →
Episode chronology
← Previous "Game Changer" Next → "Travels with Scout"

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"Benched" is the twentieth episode of the first season of Modern Family and the twentieth episode of the series overall. It premiered on ABC on April 14, 2010. The episode was written by Danny Zuker and directed by Chris Koch.

In the episode Luke and Manny's hot-tempered basketball coach quits in the middle of the game after Jay and Phil argue with him, causing both to jockey for the position. Claire and Gloria each struggle with the adolescence of Alex and Manny, respectively, and try to find a solution together. Mitchell takes Cameron along to meet a potential boss but they end up wrecking his Ferrari.

"Benched" has received positive reviews from critics and was viewed by an estimated 8.809 million households.

Luke (Nolan Gould) and Manny's (Rico Rodriguez) hot-tempered basketball coach (Eric Lange) yells at the team all the time and makes cruel remarks. Jay (Ed O'Neill) and Phil (Ty Burrell) try to convince him to treat the kids better but he suddenly quits, leaving the team without a coach in the middle of the game. The coach's departure causes Jay and Phil to jockey for the position.

Claire (Julie Bowen) takes Alex (Ariel Winter) out shopping but their trip is cut of by an encounter with some of Alex's friends from school. Alex decides to go shopping with them instead and Claire feels like her daughter has finally turned into a teenager and does not want her around. Gloria (Sofía Vergara) faces the same problem with Manny when Manny pulls her off to the side and says that her words of affection embarrass him in front of his friends. The two women end up walking together while baby-sitting Lily talking about the problem they face with their kids and how to solve it.

Meanwhile, Mitchell (Jesse Tyler Ferguson) takes Cameron (Eric Stonestreet) along to meet a potential boss, who happens to be a golfing buddy with Jay. Mitchell gets offered the job but he says that he would need to talk it over with Cameron first since they decided to change roles for a while in matter of Lily. Mitchell will be staying home with her and Cameron will go to work. While Mitchell and Cameron are discussing about the job offer, they accidentally lock themselves in the garage. Trying to get out, they end up wrecking Mitchell's new boss' Ferrari.