Profiles in Sports

For all the personalities that come and go at ESPN, Linda Cohn has been a trusted, well-respected presence for nearly 25 years. Nobody has anchored more SportsCenter shows than her.

Her 5,000th time hosting the network’s premiere program came on Feb. 21, 2016 – marking a significant accomplishment for a pioneer in this industry. Her love of sports can’t go unnoticed, especially her devotion to the New York Rangers.

Photo courtesy of lindacohn.net

For the Cleveland Cavaliers, their Game 7 win in last year’s NBA Finals over the Golden State Warriors not only capped a tremendous comeback from being down three-games-to-one, it also culminated a personal triumph for LeBron James –- bringing the city of Cleveland a long-awaited championship after leaving them in heartbreaking fashion just six years prior.

NBA writers Brian Windhorst and Dave McMenamin chronicled this incredible journey back to local hero status in a new book called Return of the King.

Photo courtesy of Grand Central Publishing

From California to Philadelphia to St. Louis to Kansas City, Dick Vermeil ran the football marathon and came out a winner – most especially so in the form of two Super Bowl appearances and a victory in Super Bowl XXXIV.

After three decades in coaching – to go along with 14 years in the broadcast booth – Vermeil’s post-retirement life has resulted in a shift in priorities. For so long, his passions were blocking and tackling. Now, they center on cabernet and chardonnay.

Photo courtesy of Yardbarker

What makes the NCAA Basketball Tournament so compelling each year are the buzzer beaters and the Cinderellas.

Thirty years ago, the 1987 championship game concluded with a late basket from a player who enjoyed his own Cinderella story. Keith Smart scored 17 second-half points against Syracuse – the last two giving the Indiana Hoosiers a 74-73 victory and a fourth national title.

Less than two years before his shining moment, the Baton Rouge, LA native was playing for Garden City Community College in Kansas having very little high school basketball experience.

Photo courtesy of Bill Haber/AP

During the first half of the 1970s, the Oakland A’s were the most colorful team in baseball – with bright double-knit uniforms, long hair and outlandish personalities. They were also the best team – winning five consecutive division titles and three straight World Series from 1972-74.

Author Jason Turbow gives us some great background on a forgotten dynasty with his new book: “Dynasitc, Bombastic, Fantastic: Reggie, Rollie, Catfish, and Charlie Finley’s Swinging A’s”.

Photo courtesy of SI.com

Fearless on the field and feared by his opponents, Easley sported a hard-hitting style en route to claiming five trips to the Pro Bowl, four first-team All-Pro selections, the 1981 Defensive Rookie of the Year and the 1984 Defensive Player of the Year.

Yet one of the best safeties of the 1980s had gotten little recognition in regards to the Hall of Fame.

That changed on February 4. Nearly three decades after his career was curtailed by illness and a mere six months following a triple bypass, Easley got the notice that few football players are privileged to receive.

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It took ten years and plenty of voters to be convinced otherwise, but Tim Raines made it to the Hall of Fame on his last try on the writer’s ballot. The premiere National League lead-off hitter of the 1980s was a seven-time All-Star with the Montreal Expos, a batting champion in 1986, and credited with 808 stolen bases – the fourth-most in major league history.

Many factors were responsible for the delayed induction. Ford C. Frick winner Dave Van Horne, who was behind the mic for Raines' entire tenure in Montreal, lends his perspective on the "Rock" had on the Expos franchise.

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

Going from unknown Red Sox prospect to a well-known face of the Houston Astros franchise, Jeff Bagwell belted 449 home runs over 15 big league seasons and was the unanimous choice for the 1994 National League Most Valuable Player.

His selection as a Hall of Famer, however, was not as resounding. In fact, it took seven tries on the writer’s ballot before the first baseman was Cooperstown-bound.

Like Ivan Rodriguez, Bagwell’s candidacy was met with whispers of steroids – albeit no concrete evidence. But his inclusion in the Hall, according to former Astros play-by-play announcer Bill Brown, was a long time coming.

Photo courtesy of Baseball Hot Corner

On January 18, the Baseball Hall of Fame announced the election of three players to the National Pastime’s most exclusive and prestigious club.

With that, we’ve entrusted the help of longtime broadcasters – each of whom got to respectively witness the primes of these inductees.

Leading off is our discussion is with Texas Rangers voice Eric Nadel and his fond memories of Ivan Rodriguez – who posted more than 2,800 hits and a lifetime batting average of .296 over 21 seasons, but is most remembered as being one of the greatest defensive catchers ever.

Photo courtesy of The Sporting News

The longest and most extensive NFL family tree belongs to Matthews clan – which dates back nearly 70 years.

Prominent in this lineage is Bruce Matthews, the versatile and durable Hall of Fame offensive lineman who played 19 seasons with the Tennessee Titans franchise and is the author of a new book, "Inside the NFL’s First Family: My Life of Football, Faith and Fatherhood."

A perfect addendum to the story came with this most recent NFC Championship, where son Jake – a left tackle for the Atlanta Falcons – advanced to the super bowl as his team defeated the Green Bay Packers, starring nephew Clay – the six-time Pro-Bowl linebacker.

Photo and audio courtesy of NFL.com