R.I.P. Stuart Scott

[ddtrane]

Woke up to this news today and it hit me really hard. He and I are the same age and he was someonI I could really relate to on the air. He was severely criticized for his blackification of ESPN, but what he brought to the network was a breath of fresh air and it made young people feel involved with his hip hop references.

http://m.espn.go.com/general/story?stor ... com%2F"%7D

He'll truly be missed.

[Rodster]

A sheer talent that will surely be missed. He had his own style and got copied like Jim Rome. IIRC they both rose to fame during the launch of ESPN 2 although Rome got tossed after his on air fight with Jim "Chris" Everett.

[Inuyasha]

This is Sad. Old time Chicago guy as well.

Woke up to this news today and it hit me really hard. He and I are the same age and he was someonI I could really relate to on the air. He was severely criticized for his blackification of ESPN, but what he brought to the network was a breath of fresh air and it made young people feel involved with his hip hop references.

http://m.espn.go.com/general/story?stor ... com%2F"%7D

He'll truly be missed.

Oh No Doubt. From a marketing perspective, his Booyah style made ESPN a ton of money and got them a younger fan base that Oblerman and Patrick couldn't. They should make a shrine for him over at Bristol.

[pk500]

I never was a fan of Scott's schtick on "SportsCenter," but I respected the hell out of his brave, dignified fight against cancer. RIP.

Like Trane, Scott is the same age as me. So this hits home.

[wco81]

Yup, he had a lot of haters.

Probably boosted their ratings because of people reacting negatively to his style as much as those who liked it.

Presumably that's why there are tributes now.

[pk500]

Yup, he had a lot of haters.

Probably boosted their ratings because of people reacting negatively to his style as much as those who liked it.

Presumably that's why there are tributes now.

Seriously? You think Scott is being lauded because he polarized people? That's an insult to the guy's legacy.

I didn't care for the hip-hop schtick because I don't like or understand that culture. I thought it also was a bit phony. But I was wrong. It wasn't artificial -- it was Scott's attempt to be unique in a sea of corny white dorks.

And he succeeded. Scott was a pioneer because he was the first guy to bring hip-hop sensibility to sports broadcasting. He also inspired scores of African-American broadcasters who followed him, letting them bring their cultural sensibility to the airwaves without fear of internal backlash.

And bottom line, whether you liked him or not, Scott was a consummate pro. The dude was always prepared, always on cue and always crammed a lot of information into his segments in between the catch phrases.