HeyJaredThe Sport of It: Heroes Nobody Expected
Heroes Nobody Expected is a storytelling podcast from The Sport of It on the Joe Randoms Sports Network. Each episode dives into the underdog stories, unsung heroes, and unforgettable moments that changed North American sports forever.
- Indexed episodes, last 90 days
- 5
- Latest publication
- Aug 17, 2026
- Audience
- Checking…
- Earliest in this view
- Jul 10, 2026
Latest episodes
Tommy John - The Bionic Man (opens the original)
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In 1974, Tommy John was a 31-year-old left-handed pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers. He had 124 career wins. He was in his prime. Then he felt a "crash" in his elbow. A complete tear of the ulnar collateral ligament. At the time, that was a career-ending injury. There was no comeback. There was no second act. Dr. Frank Jobe proposed something radical. An experimental procedure that had never been done before. He told John the odds were 1 in 100 . John took the gamble. On September 25, 1974, Jo
Don Nelson - The Visionary Who Saw the Future (opens the original)
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He was a five-time NBA champion as a player. He won 1,335 games as a head coach, second-most in NBA history. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame. And yet, he never got the full credit he deserved. Don Nelson saw the future of basketball decades before anyone else. The point forward. The shooting big man. Positionless basketball. Small ball. Pace and space. All of it. He believed in a 7-foot German kid named Dirk Nowitzki when nobody else did. He believed in a skinny point guard from Davidson n
Season 2 - Episode 12 - Alysa Liu: The Happiest Skate On Ice (opens the original)
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This one hits close to home. Alysa Liu grew up in the East Bay, in Richmond, skating at the Oakland Ice Center. By 13, she was the youngest U.S. national champion in history. By 16, she was at the Olympics. And then... she walked away from everything, the fame, the pressure, the future everyone had planned for her. She was burned out. Broken. A puppet whose strings were being pulled by everyone except herself. She went to college. She hiked Everest. And when she was ready, she came back skating
Season 2 - Episode 11 - Doug Flutie: The Little Quarterback Who Never Quit (opens the original)
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He won the Heisman Trophy. He threw the most famous pass in college football history. And the NFL told him he was too small. In 1984, Doug Flutie was the most exciting player in college football. He won the Heisman. He led Boston College to a miracle victory over Miami with the unforgettable "Hail Mary." He was supposed to be the future of the NFL. Then the scouts measured him. At 5-foot-9 and three-quarters, generously listed at 5-foot-10, Flutie was too short for the NFL's prototype. So when t
Season 2 - Episode 10 - Shaun Livingston: The Leg That Shouldn't Have Healed (opens the original)
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He was the next Magic Johnson. Then his leg bent the wrong way, and doctors talked about amputation. In 2004, Shaun Livingston was the fourth overall pick in the NBA Draft. A 6-foot-7 point guard with dazzling skills, he was supposed to be the future of the Los Angeles Clippers. Then, on February 26, 2007, everything changed. He drove for a layup. He landed wrong. His left knee buckled at a severe angle. He tore his ACL, his PCL, his MCL. He dislocated his kneecap. He dislocated his femur and ti
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