Sports movie characters fulfill a fantasy for us viewers. They are the people who defy the odds, overcoming tragedy and adversity – sometimes at great sacrifice – to achieve. Maybe that is why we love these characters so much, because all of the real-life sports figures fall well short of our fantasies.
Don’t know why I thought about this recently, but since VH1 is making a fortune off of Top Whatever lists, I figured I’d take my shot at it. This time, it’s Top 10 sports movie characters of all time. This is my humble opinion, and there are countless characters that could be on this list if it were a different person making it, so forgive me if I missed one of your favorites.
Here is my Top 10:
10. Kevin O’Shea, Little Giants – “You’ll never get anywhere using your helmet as a lunch box, kid.”
Maybe it’s because I just saw this movie recently, but Kevin O’Shea, played by Ed O’Neill (formerly Al Bundy, which also makes him awesome) in Little Giants is one of the funniest characters ever. He makes that movie and represents the take-things-way-too-seriously youth coach and goes way over the top with everything. The aviators, the Cowboys’ jacket and the short shorts don’t hurt either.
9. Billy Hoyle, White Men Can’t Jump – “You got a ‘Z’ in your fro, man. What are you, the black Zorro?”
Billy Hoyle, played be Woody Harrelson, was the icon for one of the biggest stereotypes/truths in the history of basketball: white men can’t jump. He’s a little white guy with a backwards hat, some serious attitude and looks like he’s been wearing the same clothes for the better part of a month. He also talks waaaaaaaayyyyyyyy too much trash for his own good, and it’s ridiculously funny. He makes the Top 10 because great basketball characters are extremely hard to come by for some reason.
8. Harry Doyle, Major League – “Juuuuusssssssssssttttttt a bit outside.”
Harry Doyle, played by Bob Eucker, is an under-the-radar character in Major League who provides one of the best announcer movie characters in history. As much as I like Orsillo and Remy, I wish I had Harry Doyle and Marty calling the Sox games. It would be non-stop entertainment.
7. The Sandlot Cast, The Sandlot – “You’re killin’ me Smalls.”
There are just way too many good characters from this movie to single any one of them out, so I figured just throw the whole bunch of them in there. From Benny “The Jet” Rodrigues to Smalls to Squints to Ham, from top to bottom it is nothing but a funny baseball classic that brings everyone back to their childhoods and the quirky rules that you had for your makeshift baseball field in your backyard or down at the local park. Some might consider putting a whole cast in here a cop-out, but whatever.
6. Norm Dale, Hoosiers – “My team is on the floor.”
It is the original sports movie with the original ideal coach in Norm Dale, played by Gene Hackman. Dale teaches the value of team, sportsmanship, effort, and all of the other clich
