Featured Stories – Scott Lienard’s Journey to the Mic
Finding His Voice: Scott Lienard's Journey to the Mic
By George Diaz
Many kids idolize sports heroes, dreaming of the day when they grow up to be the next Michael Jordan, Peyton Manning or Caitlin Clark.
Scott Lienard harbored no such ambitions. But he was drawn to sports at a young age through the voices of the game. The announcers. He tuned into their cadence and pitch, at the ripe old age of 6. He was particularly smitten by Paul Porter, the longtime voice of the Orlando Magic. And he was hooked.
“That's my guy,” Lienard says today. “Yeah, he started me down this road.”
Scott nurtured his ambitions with in-home training. He would turn off the sound on his sports video games and do the play-by-play. And he would tape sporting events and rewind them just to listen to the voice of the announcers.
Now 29, Lienard has carved his own niche in sports broadcasting. He isn’t nearly as famous as Porter, but his story resonates just as importantly as the voices of the game who inspired him.
Lienard was born with a learning disability, a condition that usually closes doors to many career aspirations. Not Lienard. His focus, determination and grit have allowed his voice to be heard.
He is the voice of the Oviedo High School and Seminole State College softball teams and recently worked a handful of games for the FHSAA state softball finals, hosted by the Greater Orlando Sports Commission.
Scott’s story doesn’t involve sympathetic handouts. It’s about his dedication and enthusiasm, and opportunities that came to fruition.
“Scott has had the good fortune of knowing what he wanted to do from a young age,” said his father, Kevin Lienard. “We’re just trying to figure out how to get him from point A to point B and getting those opportunities has been cool and rewarding.”
Scott’s career focus at such a young age was extremely important to the family. They asked him a simple question: “What do you want to do when you grow up?”
“Sports announcer!” he shot back immediately.
And so together, mom, dad and sister all became engaged in making Scott’s passion a reality.
“It's not an easy thing to break into, so trying to figure out, with his background and his situation, how do we make it work was our goal,” Kevin Lienard said.
Kevin approached officials with the Special Olympics Florida (which also has a long-standing relationship with the Greater Orlando Sports Commission), and they immediately bought in, assigning Scott to work games as the PA announcer for basketball, soccer and a handful of other sports, beginning in 2015.
“Scott’s journey is a powerful reminder of what’s possible when talent and determination meet opportunity,” said Special Olympics Florida President and CEO Sherry Wheelock. “We believe all our athletes deserve the chance to shine — on the field, in the classroom, or behind the microphone. Scott has shown the world that with passion and perseverance, nothing is impossible.”
After graduating high school in 2016, Scott began classes at the Connecticut School of Broadcasting. He enrolled in a six-month program that featured a number of prominent local announcers, including Brandon Kravitz, an iHeart radio host.
“That really started my career off,” Scott said. “I got to learn from some of the guys that I've heard on the radio.”
Through it all, Scott has benefitted from a supportive team: His family. Kevin sits beside his son during games, lending a supportive role that occasionally includes a reminder to tone down his exuberance. Lisa, his mom, provides the walk-up and in-between innings music. And sister Emily, a former Oviedo High softball player, has a job as an employment specialist for individuals with intellectual disabilities.
His work with the Special Olympics led to a gig announcing Babe Ruth League games in Oviedo. The next step was Oviedo High School in 2017, which was an easy sell.
“We knew the coach and so they let him do JV the first year because they didn't have a JV announcer,” Kevin said. “And the following year the varsity announcer didn’t come back, so Scott moved up to varsity that year.”
Now about that flair for showmanship. It’s all part of Scott’s enthusiastic approach to announcing, one that definitely favors the home team. He makes no apologies. In fact, he embraces it. All you have to do is look at the name on the t-shirt he wears for every game: It reads “Fanannouncer.” Half fan. Half announcer.
“I bring the energy every night to Oviedo,” he said. “I try to give the girls the energy that they need to pull off a victory,” he said. “And in return, they bring the energy to every game and play their best.”
Scott’s style has not gone unnoticed.
Kurt Esser, the former athletic director at Seminole State, just happened to play in a golf tournament in conjunction with Special Olympics Florida. He was smitten by Scott’s style and asked him if he would be interested in becoming the PA announcer for the school’s baseball and softball teams.
“I wanted someone with an energetic presence,” Esser said. “One of the saddest things about leaving Seminole State is that I miss working with Scott, his dad and his mom. They are all fantastic.”
Esser, who now runs the Florida region of USA Volleyball, and is on the executive board of the Greater Orlando Sports Commission, has remained a fan. Through his recommendation, Scott was hired to work a handful of games for the FHSAA Softball Championships in May of 2025.
And no doubt Esser’s support helped drive Scott’s recent induction into the Seminole County Sports Hall of Fame. Scott was honored on May 12, along with six other Seminole County standouts.
“It has given me more confidence in myself believing I can do this,” he said after his induction.
Scott has even higher aspirations.
“Truth be told, Scott would love to announce full-time professionally, and we'd love to be able to do that all year round,” Kevin Lienard said. “So we're trying to find those opportunities for him.”
“Any of the major sports,” Scott said.
Why not? Dream big, or go home, as they say.
