2024 sports media superlatives Edit via Liam McGuire
By Matt Yoder on

On New Year’s Eve, the world will bring 2024 to a close. And it was a year unlike any other in sports media.

Although we have already dished out awards with The Awfulies and counted down the best bloopers of the year, there were so many memorable moments in 2024 that deserve to be saved for posterity in some kind of way that doesn’t fit into any kind of internet-approved category for these types of things.

So that’s why we are here to send off 2024 in style by remembering the weirdest, wildest, and most wonderful moments of the year in sports media.

Most Unnecessary Flex of the Year – Adam Schefter

This entire post was written as a way to save for the history books that ESPN insider Adam Schefter felt the need to share with the world that he once broke NFL news while having sex. Let me repeat that. For some reason only unbeknownst to him, Adam Schefter felt the need to broadcast to the world that he once broke NFL news while having sex. If we have to live with that image for the rest of our lives, then so do you.

Most Unnecessary Self-Promotional Moment of the Year – Stephen A. Smith

Somehow ESPN managed to turn Game 7 of an NBA playoff series into being all about analyst Stephen A. Smith. Their coverage was baffling, even spotlighting Smith walking into the arena like he was about ready to suit up and play 45 minutes for Tom Thibodeau. It was like watching Keeping Up With the Kardashians if it was an NBA game broadcast. At least it was still better than the network’s College Football Playoff coverage.

Worst Sports Betting Advice of the Year – Darren Rovell

Darren Rovell shifted from the sports betting beat to covering collectibles this year, and this might be why. All the way back on January 1st, Rovell delivered his STONE COLD DOUBLE BOLTED DIAMOND ENCRUSTED LOCK OF THE YEAR. He touted under 57.5 between Wisconsin and LSU in the Reliaquest Bowl. That total was surpassed in the third quarter.

LeBron James Clutch Gene Award – Pablo Torre

Finding the most clutch moment of the year was easy. And no, it was not a game-winning touchdown in overtime of the Super Bowl. It was Pablo Torre delivering a fast-money performance for the ages for the win on Family Feud in an epic comeback that will go down in the annals of game show lore.

Weirdest Dan Orlovsky Moment of the Year – Dan Orlovsky

ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky is known for his passion and dedication to the craft of football x’s and o’s and also for being a bit of an odd duck. While there are millions of examples to choose from, this year the honor goes to the time on First Take that he randomly decided to smell Molly Qerim’s shoe in a moment that made Rex Ryan insanely jealous.

Kevin Harlan Ad Read of the Year – Kevin Harlan

One of the many reasons why the people love Kevin Harlan is his ability to turn a simple ad read into a must-see moment, like he did here during the NCAA Tournament in which he displayed his “thespian” qualities while doing a promo for a new Halo series.

Funniest Innuendo of the Year – Micah Richards

The CBS Champions League studio crew of Kate Scott, Thierry Henry, Jamie Carragher, and Micah Richards is one of the best and most entertaining in all of sports. And they brought the goods for this segment when they went all in on having fun with the name of Ligue 1 club Brest.

Worst Retirement Gift of the Year – John Sterling

Legendary New York Yankees announcer John Sterling abruptly announced his retirement earlier this year. And in honor of all his years of service to the franchise, the Yankees presented him with… a giant flat-screen television? It’s like someone realized an hour before the ceremony that they had no gift for Sterling and ran down the street to the Bronx Target. This is a team that has a literal Monument Park to honor Yankees greats. Those things aren’t even expensive anymore! No wonder Sterling went back on his retirement and returned for the postseason.

Aaron Rodgers Conspiracy of the Year – Tartaria

Netflix's 'Aaron Rodgers: Enigma' proved to be, if nothing else, an interesting watch.
Screengrab: Aaron Rodgers Enigma

It was a terrible year for Aaron Rodgers with the New York Jets, but a great year when it came to peddling some of his insane conspiracy theories. At the top of the list was a truly bonkers podcast appearance from March that showed just how deep Rodgers is into this stuff. The wildest of them all was his thoughts on the Tartarian Empire, a supposedly vast worldwide empire that has been erased from history. The theory has been called the “QAnon of architecture.”

Non-Aaron Rodgers Conspiracy of the Year – OAN’s Super Bowl psy-op

In the non-Aaron Rodgers division, who could forget this truly bonkers OAN segment that accused the entirety of professional sports of being a “psy-op” so that they could be “brainwashed” into becoming sports fans? And that doesn’t even touch on vaccines, Democrats, Biden, Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce, Jesus, and so much more.

Mystery Person of the Year – CNN Sports

Doc Rivers returned to coaching with the Milwaukee Bucks this year. And while you may have thought Woj or Shams or even Chris Haynes would break the news, it was none other than CNN Sports. Wait, who? We still have no idea who it actually was that got the story and CNN Sports has not emerged from the shadows since. Maybe in 2025, George Michael’s Sports Machine will break some news.

Biggest Diss of the Year – Jay Williams doesn’t think Caitlin Clark is great… yet

Jay Williams doesn’t think Caitlin Clark is great because she hasn’t yet won a championship, even though she was arguably the greatest women’s college basketball player of the modern era. Do we really want to go down that road? Because if so then Mark Madsen is better than Karl Malone and Charles Barkley put together.

Best Announcing Call in a Foreign Language – Steph Curry

@magicisthegoat32 “The Devil Named Curry”😂😂😂 #StephCurry #USABasketball #USA #2024OlympicsGames ♬ original sound – MagicIsTheGoat

One of the best memories of the year in sports in 2024 was Steph Curry’s heroics in the gold medal game between Team USA and France… made all the more incredible by the French commentary that could not believe what they were witnessing. We’re waiting for Mike Breen to break out something akin to “this devil named Curry is hurting us.”

Hallmark Channel Moment of the Year – Jameis Winston

Jameis Winston gave us so many great moments this year during his brief tenure as the starting quarterback of the Cleveland Browns, but if we had to pick one it would be expressing true childlike joy at the thought of playing football in the snow. Not even the 1972 Dolphins or 1985 Bears were beating Jameis on that night.

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