Top 25 Sports Rants, Tirades of All Time
Best Sports Tirades, Rants of All Time
It's often said that sports bring out the worst in people and we are definitely not attempting to disprove that. Over the years, and especially recently, coaches and athletes alike (but especially the former type) have absolutely given us some gems of press conferences and interviews simply because they blew their tops. You can probably thing of a handful off the top of your head and rest assured, they're all on this list.
However, this list includes a few that you may have never seen or even heard of, but that doesn't make them any less enjoyable. We've got funny, we've got stupid, we've got creative and we've got just plain bizarre, but they're all worth watching and we have the video of each one ready for your viewing pleasure.
Of course, be sure to comment below and let us know if there are any we missed or if you would have ranked them differently. By the time you're done, you probably will be too tired from laughing to even worry about it, but that's what these types of things are for, right?
25. David Bennett: Act more like dogs!
This is likely one that you haven't seen before, but it makes the list because of two things: Bennett's awesome accent and the sheer bizarreness of the rant, story or whatever you want to call it. They simply could not have scripted this any better.
24. Derek Anderson cares
This one absolutely makes my blood boil because Anderson was caught red-handed and the only way he could get out of it was to act like he was hysterically angry afterward. This is one of the most disgraceful things ever done by an athlete because he was simply too much of a coward to face up to his faults.
23. Jim Everrett goes after Jim Rome
Considering Jim Rome is the biggest frontrunner and wannabe tough guy in the world, this is funny. But the fact that it absolutely cannot be real overrides that fact. If Rome really squealed like a pig as is the case in the video, my life would be complete. But alas, Everette gave about 40% effort in "going after" Rome, which leads me to believe this was staged.
22. Mike Ditka in a bad mood: Talk to the trainer!
This is really classic Ditka. He was in a bad mood (when isn't he?) and he wasn't afraid to hide it. There have to be countless times when coaches just want the questions to be over and Ditka definitely didn't try to sugarcoat that fact after practice with a losing team.
21. Mike Singletary: Can't do it!
Most rants are great because of the hilarious tangents coaches usually take, but this one was funny simly because Singletary couldn't think of what to say next and it was all he could do to keep from tripping over his own words.
20. Jim Calhoun: Are you really that stupid?
The brutal honesty of Calhoun in this milder rant is the best part. He didn't hold back at all and answered the reporter's "stupid " question honestly, then gave him advice on his lack of intelligence and then rebuked him for the appreciation. Only Jim Calhoun.
19. Tony La Russa: Did you switch papers?
You can't say anything negative about Tony La Russa. He kept his composure while protecting the dignity of himself and his club in this milder rant. How you you not like this guy?
18. Rick Pitino: Larry Bird is not walking through that door
This one isn't quite as funny, but it's iconic in the sports rant debate. Even years later after Pitino got a tattoo from Louisville's 2013 national title, folks joked that he needs a tattoo of Larry Bird walking through a door. Priceless.
17. Ryan Leaf: Knock it off!
"Sad" doesn't even begin to describe the life of Leaf. As you can see in the picture above, he hasn't exactly done well since his disappointing NFL tenure came to an end. Sports may have neer seen a bigger crybaby or immature hothead before or since Leaf.
16. Terrell Owens: That's my quarterback
Terrell Owens is a lot of things, but a crybaby (in this sense, anyway) isn't one of them. However, he teared up when the media "attacked" one of his countless quarterbacks. And above all, it was Tony Romo! C'mon, man!
15. Anything related to Ozzie Guillen
We don't really understand much of what Ozzie says, but we know it's funny. If reporters were flies, this guy was honey because they absolutely flocked to him and stayed there until he stopped talking, which was quite a while in some cases.
14. Kevin Borseth's epic intro to rant of a press conference
That's how you start a post-game press conference! Borseth was mad from the get-go and he didn't hide it. Of course, it's always great when a coach attacks a reporter because of a dumb question, but the way Borseth began this presser was originally awesome.
13. Dan Hawkins: This ain't intramurals!
If you've ever had the mother of a an employee call your office, then you know what Hawkins was going through. This wasn't an employee's mother, but it was a college athlete -- a grown man. You definitely can't blame Hawkins for being upset and he had every right to call out the writer of the "anonymous letter" because this ain't intramurals!
12. Hal McRae: Stupid questions!
McRae's rant itself wasn't that great by any stretch of the imagination (anything that is mostly profanity simply isn't funny), but the basis of his rant is what every coach/athlete deals with on a daily basis and his last line was absolutely priceless, minus the expletive.
11. John Chaney to John Calipari: I'll kill ya
Two legends going toe to toe. What could be better, right? Well, Calipari may have talked a lot (which he did during the game in question) and pointed at Chaney, but I'd put my money on Temple's most historic skipper if they hadn't have been separated.
10. "Classic Lou" Piniella
You've got to love how everyone just dubs this clip "Classic Lou." You've got to give Piniella some credit -- it takes a lot of energy to get that fired up when you're managing a team like the Cubs.
9. Anything with John McEnroe
Where do we start with John McEnroe. From the "answer my question!" bit to the "you have got to be kidding me!" tirade, this guy never left the crowd wanting more. Because of that, we've got a collage of rants from tennis' biggest hothead.
8. Mike Tyson: I want to eat his children
There are really words that are capable of describing this, yet it's so typical of a guy like Tyson. Seriously, were you surprised when he said he wanted to each Lennox Lewis' children?
7. Bob Knight throws chair
No words. Just a chair flying across the court before a technical free throw attempt. Classic.
The best part is the fact head referee Ed Hightower looked like he was about to wet his pants before then-Indiana athletic director Ralph Floyd was called to calm Knight down. Needless to say, that didn't work.
6. Dennis Green: They are who we thought they were!
This infamous rant was just the pure frustration of a head football coach after a collapse by his team. The words of choice used by Green are questionable, but that's what makes this rant so awesome. It's worthy of a top-five spot on any such list ranking the best sports rants of all time.
5. Phil Wellman's Epic Tirade
Who cares what Wellman said during this tirade? There are so many memorable moments of this masterpiece that it would be unfair to point out any single one, except for the grenade launch of the rosin bag, of course.
4. Allen Iverson: Practice!
The best part about this particular rant is the amount of fun we've had with it since it happened. Fortunately, Iverson has been a good sport as well.
3. Herm Edwards: You play to win the game!
The best part about this edition of "Hermisms" is that the Jets heeded what Edwards had to say and went from 2-5 to 9-7 and won the AFC East. That's what rants by coaches are for, right?
2. Mike Gundy: I'm a man! I'm 40!
It's sad but true: Gundy really put Oklahoma State back on the map with this gem of a presser. And we cannot thank him enough for providing us with "man jokes" for the next half century.
1. Jim Mora: Playoffs?!
Finally, the greatest sports rant of all time. Jim Mora, Sr. took everybody by surprise with his continuation of hilarious, high-pitched version of the single-word question "playoffs?!"
