Bobby Knight
Head Basketball Coach, National Collegiate Athletics Association
Teams: Army, Indiana, Texas Tech

Go to YouTube and look up Bobby Knight. You will, without question, see some of the most shocking and absurd displays of anger in sports that man has ever perpetrated. Chairs flying onto the court, referees lambasted on the sidelines, press conferences turned into verbal shooting galleries - all amazing feats of sporting anger, all produced by one man.

Knight has been coaching in the NCAA for longer than any of his current roster has been alive, probably longer than most of their parents have been alive. In that stretch, a man can create quite a legacy for himself. While most coaches would prefer to have that legacy enshrined as one of success and championships, for Knight it’s more been about showing the world just how far you can get with an obvious rage disorder.

There’s not much more to say about the legendary Knight, really. Mention his name to anyone in the basketball world and they shudder, their eyes distant with either a) an obvious thankfulness that they never played for him or b) a look of suppressed terror remembering the seasons spent under his guidance, likely comparable to the look a Vietnam veteran gives when asked to describe the war.

Congratulations Bobby Knight, you earned this induction more than words can express.

Lou Piniella
Manager, Major League Baseball
Professional Teams: New York Yankees, Cincinnati Reds, Seattle Mariners, Tampa Bay Devil Rays, Chicago Cubs

When one thinks of anger in sports, Lou Piniella is the face that jumps to mind. No man in the history of sports has been more explosive, kicked more dirt, thrown more hats, or spent more time nose-to-nose with an official than “Sweet” Lou. After establishing his combustible nature early in his career, his pinnacle of rage came in his days as manager of a young, inept Tampa Bay Devils Rays club. Notorious for cursing out players and looking to the sky for answers, as well as ruining Ben Grieve’s confidence to the point that he faded into obscurity almost immediately after his time under Piniella, there is just no man alive who has been as consistently angry in sports as the legendary skipper.

Congratulations Lou Piniella, may your remaining years in baseball be as anger-filled and enjoyable to watch as the prior three decades.

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