ESPN Films

With five outs remaining in Game 6 of the 2003 NLCS, a foul ball descended from the cold Chicago sky, seemingly destined for the glove of Cubs left fielder Moises Alou. But a flurry of hands reached up and one hand, belonging to Cubs fan Steve Bartman, fatefully tipped the ball away from a frustrated Alou. Most long-suffering Cubs fans, including a chorus of hostile ones in Wrigley Field, quickly became convinced that Bartman had swatted away Chicago’s chance of advancing to the World Series for the first time 58 years. The mild-mannered Bartman released a sincere public apology, but his fate was already sealed by the Cubs fans’ need for a scapegoat to explain a near-century of losing. Oscar-winning documentarian Alex Gibney relates the scapegoat compulsion to his own frustration as a Red Sox fan when Bill Buckner was similarly singled out for letting a fateful ground ball go through his legs in Game 6 of the 1986 World Series.

The film tells the story of Renée Richard’s battle to enter the 1977 U.S. Open as the first transgender tennis player. Simultaneously, it follows her today as she struggles to cope with a life of contradictions and personal conflict. Through interviews with tennis legends, family, friends and experts from the transgender field; a story of perseverance, breakthrough and hardship unfolds.

The Dotted Line is an in-depth look at what it takes to be a big-time agent in the fiercely competitive world of major league sports. Agents Peter Greenberg and Eugene Lee are profiled along with their clients New York Mets’ pitcher Johan Santana (Greenberg’s) and NFL hopefuls Jacquian Williams and Robert Hughes (Lee’s).

In June of 1999 an unlikely colt named Charismatic, with down and out jockey Chris Antley aboard, headed down the stretch at the Belmont Stakes, just seconds away from becoming the first Triple Crown winner in nearly 21 years. Thoroughbred racing was desperate for this story of deliverance as track attendance was in steep decline. Into this void stepped Charismatic and Antley, both thought to be lost causes. Together, they became the biggest long shots in 59 years to win the Kentucky Derby, and then followed up with another underdog win at the Preakness, before tragedy struck.

Chuck Wepner is a liquor salesman from Bayonne, NJ who drives a Cadillac with “Champ” vanity plates. A former New Jersey State Heavyweight Boxing Champion, he took abuse from Sonny Liston, got his nose broken by Muhammad Ali, and inspired Sylvester Stallone to write “Rocky” which won three Academy Awards. Wepner was left out of the “Rocky” glory, and his career took turn after strange turn as he worked to stay in the spotlight: he went on to fight Andre the Giant as “The Assassin” and boxed a 900 pound bear.  Twice.

Chris Herren, Fall River, Massachusetts’ high school basketball superstar, played for Boston University, for Jerry Tarkanian’s Fresno State team, bounced around the NBA (once playing for his beloved Celtics) and around the globe. Chris failed drug tests wherever he played. Ultimately, Chris - the youngest and most talented of three generations of local heroes - has found redemption and personal fulfillment through the game, but only after it led him down a path of alcohol and drug addiction that nearly killed him.

From birth, Todd Marinovich was raised with a defined purpose of creating the perfect athlete. Trained by his father Marv, a former pro football player,  the young Marinovich  was meticulously engineered and nurtured into a star quarterback. But three short years later he was out of the NFL. The “test tube athlete” was a full-blown drug addict;  a cautionary tale of epic proportion. Now, almost two decades removed from the national spotlight, Marinovich tells the unvarnished story of his unique ascent to stardom and the dark descent into drugs and oblivion that followed.  First-person accounts from Marinovich and his family, including his father, as well as a treasure trove of never-before-seen footage, will trace the phenom’s tale from the cradle to the gridiron and ultimately answer a persistent question…“what went wrong with Todd Marinovich?”

On Thursday, Nov. 7, 1991, Earvin "Magic" Johnson made people stop and watch at the Forum in Inglewood, California. But this time it wasn't his basketball brilliance as a perennial NBA All-Star and three-time MVP that was captivating audiences worldwide. Instead, the 32-year-old ground-breaking point guard was holding a press conference to make the stunning announcement that he was HIV-positive and would be retiring from basketball immediately. More than 20 years after the announcement, director Nelson George gets to the core of Magic’s incredible personal journey and explores how he continues to thrive two decades later, thanks in large part to the fortitude of his wife, the vision of his friend and AIDS activist, the late Elizabeth Glaser, and the commitment of his former head coach Pat Riley. Friends and Family share their memories of that time and insights on the character of the man who put a new face on HIV and AIDS.

The appeal of the Lolo Jones story goes beyond the track and field community. It is one of heartbreak, adversity and the hope of triumph at the end, the kind of storyline that appeals to the masses. This is her story!

Profiling former Georgia running back Herschel Walker. The 1982 Heisman Trophy winner overcame teenage bouts with bullying for being overweight and having a severe stutter.

The Play That Changed College Football takes a look back at the first SEC Championship Game in 1992 between Florida and Alabama. The documentary dives into what the inaugural championship meant at the time and what it has meant to college football today.

Explore the rise, fall and re-birth of legendary University of Arkansas coach Nolan Richardson, at a time when the state of Arkansas was at the epicenter of American culture.

An insightful look at Sylvester Croom, the first African-American center at the University of Alabama and one of the school’s first black players. After playing for legendary coach Paul “Bear” Bryant, then coaching under him for a decade, Croom eventually rose to to become head football coach at Mississippi State University and, more importantly, the first African American head coach in the Southeastern Conference. Narrated by Terrence Howard.

Plagued by injuries at UK and the NBA, Sam Bowie has always been overshadowed by his draft placement. The 7-foot-1 center was seen by many as a franchise player when he was selected by Portland with the second overall pick in the 1984 NBA Draft, just ahead of Michael Jordan. Sadly, injuries limited his success while Jordan helped the NBA reach new heights. Sam Bowie went on to a long and relatively productive professional career, despite recurring leg injuries. Still, he labeled a bust because of the lofty expectations. Going Big tells Bowie’s story of perseverance and determination. Now a successful horse-owner in Lexington who never let his run of bad fortune deflate his spirit, Bowie has found success and happiness.

Trailing Mississippi State 59-56 with seconds left in regulation, Alabama forward Mykal Riley heaves a buzzer beater as time expires in the 2008 SEC men’s basketball tournament.  Unknowingly, his shot has saved thousands of lives.  A few minutes into overtime, the Georgia Dome begins to shake.  A major tornado is sweeping through downtown Atlanta, the first to hit the city since the 1880s.  If the game ended in regulation, thousands would have been outside unprotected in the path of the oncoming twister. This “Miracle Three” prevented a major tragedy.  What followed was also a “miracle three” days when rivals united, heroes emerged and underdogs prevailed.

Abby Wambach never gives up. The soccer phenom has maintained an astonishing level of success, from helping the Florida Gators win their first and only national championship, to collecting a Founders Cup title with the WUSA’s Washington Freedom and earning two Olympic gold medals. But her journey included setbacks - the collapse of a professional league, World Cup disappointments, and a career-threatening injury - all while shouldering the changing of the guard of the Women’s National Team. Abby: Head On shows how Wambach has persevered, making her mark on the sport and becoming one of the best this country has ever produced.

Perhaps no family has had more influence on a sport than the Mannings. Written into the pages of football folklore is the Manning legend – a father and his sons. Patriarch Archie Manning, a star quarterback at the University of Mississippi and in the NFL, followed by oldest son Cooper, whose football dreams were cut short by a spinal condition, then sons Peyton and Eli – both of them quarterbacks, All-SEC, number one draft picks, back-to-back Super Bowl champions and MVPs. Director Rory Karpf explores how a tragedy shaped the course of not only Archie’s life, but his family’s as well.

When Alabama’s Sarah Patterson and Georgia’s Suzanne Yoculan arrived on their respective campuses, both programs were on the verge of folding. The Crimson Tide and the Gym Dogs were having little success, and Patterson and Yoculan were brought in to help salvage what was left. What no one could have guessed at the time is that not only would the two programs become the best in the nation, but the coaches would become pioneers and mavericks of the sport forever. In the 25 years that Yoculan and Patterson coached against each other, they filled arenas with passionate fans while winning a combined 21 SEC Championships and 14 NCAA titles

What do Ashley Judd, Darius Rucker, James Carville and Governor Rick Perry have in common? Well, they live and die with the fortunes of their respective SEC schools. 14 famous figures—each representing a different college in the Southeastern Conference—spill their emotions and explain why they’ll never forget where they came from. Also features Charlie Daniels, Amy Robach, Jonathan Papelbon, Melissa Joan Hart, Emmitt Smith, Shepard Smith and Ralphie May, among others.

It started with the unheralded arrival of a wisecracking heavyweight basketball player named Charles Barkley. Then came the recruitment of multi-sports legend Bo Jackson, a victory in itself since he might have gone to Alabama. When Frank Thomas wasn’t drafted by a major league baseball team, he decided to cast his fate with Auburn… as a football player. Told through an unforgettable reunion of the famed trio at the 2013 Iron Bowl, here’s the real story of how these future Hall of Famers turned the orange and blue of Tiger athletics into gold.

The SEC is in Steve Spurrier’s blood. He grew up in Tennessee as a fan of the Volunteers. He won the Heisman Trophy as the quarterback for the University of Florida, and then came back to coach the Gators to a national championship. Now he coaches the University of South Carolina, the team that produced the No. 1 pick in the 2014 NFL draft, Jadeveon Clowney. Co-executive produced by Kenny Chesney and Shaun Silva, “The Believer” reveals the essence of the most competitive man in the most competitive football conference in the nation.

On October 28, 1989, Ole Miss defensive back Chucky Mullins hit Vanderbilt running back Brad Gaines in the back and separated him from the ball. While Gaines was uninjured, Mullins suffered a broken neck on the play, leaving him a quadriplegic. But in that heartbreaking moment, a friendship was born that lasted another two years, until Mullins died of a blood clot in a Memphis hospital room, with Gaines at his side. “It’s Time” chronicles the inspirational journeys of these two men brought together by tragedy.

The tale of the 2011 Cricket World Cup and India’s come from behind victory- the culmination of a journey that illustrates how a sport and one man, Sachin Tendulkar, redefined the rise of a nation over the course of a few weeks.

Narrated by Louisiana native and music superstar Tim McGraw, follow former basketball great Shaquille O’Neal as he returns to LSU to visit with Dale Brown, the coach who helped make it all possible. The relationship between these two men goes back to the time when Shaq was 13 and living on an army base in Germany when he asked the coach for some exercise tips. Since that day, O’Neal has received at least one letter or email from Brown every week—and a lot more of them during their three years together in Baton Rouge. Back then, they might have seemed very different, but they forged a deep friendship that they cherish to this day.

Before the basketball world came to know him as “The Human Highlight Film,” a teenage Dominique Wilkins quickly became the toast of his new hometown of Washington, North Carolina. The 6’8” basketball star led the Pam Pack to 56 straight victories and two state titles. But when he chose the University of Georgia over local ACC schools, the cheers turned to jeers and resentment twisted the high school highlights into a lowlight. That betrayal left ‘Nique distrustful of fans until a community of support in Georgia convinced him otherwise and paved the way for his return home.

Grantland Features’ first full-length documentary, Son of the Congo, chronicles Oklahoma City Thunder star Serge Ibaka’s improbable journey from his native Congo and return home as a top echelon NBA player. The film follows Ibaka’s return home to war-stricken Congo to recount the poignant story of his childhood and confront the stark reality faced by a new generation of Congolese youth. Ibaka revisits the neighborhoods where he once slept in empty lots and practiced basketball without shoes. With grace and generosity, Ibaka receives and supports an endless stream of friends and strangers who hope he can change their lives through his unshakeable faith that a better future is only possible if you never stop trying.

When Rick Pitino was hired to coach the Kentucky basketball team in 1989, the once-proud program was reeling from NCAA probation and the loss of scholarships. He needed to shake things up and give the players who stayed a fresh perspective. To help achieve this, in 1990 he hired Bernadette Locke, only the second female assistant coach in Division I men’s basketball history. A former star point guard with the University of Georgia, Locke brought knowledge, spirit and academic discipline to the Wildcats. In two years, Kentucky basketball returned to prominence and, though still undermanned by the loss of scholarships, the Wildcats made it all the way to the Elite 8 in 1992. As Pitino and her fellow assistants Billy Donovan and Tubby Smith attest, Coach Bernie made a difference.

The best team never to win the College World Series? It might have been the 1985 Mississippi State Bulldogs, who produced four Major League Baseball All-Stars. Two of them, Bobby Thigpen and Jeff Brantley, became Relievers of the Year, while the other two, Will Clark and Rafael Palmeiro, formed the imposing one-two punch known as “Thunder and Lightning.” As teammates at Mississippi State, they nearly propelled the Bulldogs to a College World Series title. Thirty years later, director Rory Karpf revisits those fabled Bulldogs, tracks the complicated relationship between Clark and Palmeiro, and brings closure to men who should be remembered for what they did, and not for what they didn’t do.