Staff Writer
ESPN
anchor Stuart Scott lost a seven year fight against appendiceal cancer, passing
away on Sunday, January 4 at the age of 49. Scott was married to Kimberly Scott
and had two children named Taelor and Sydni. In 2007, Scott went to the
hospital with stomach pains and had his appendix removed along with part of his
colon and several lymph nodes. After his surgery, Scott appeared to be cancer
free, but his cancer returned in 2011, and again in 2013. "To be honest,
I'm scared. I've always been afraid of cancer, but this time feels different.
My confidence is shaken. I'm a little more vulnerable, a little more aware of
my mortality, a little more uncertain about my future," said Scott to
Men’s Health Magazine in 2013.
Scott
graduated from UNC Chapel Hill in 1987 with a Bachelor of Arts in speech
communication. Scott started his career as a weekend sports anchor and news
reporter at WDPE-TV in Florence, South Carolina. He then became a news anchor
at WRAL-5 in Raleigh, North Carolina. Scott then worked as a sports reporter at
WESH, a news station in Orlando, Florida. After leaving WESH, Scott was hired
at ESPN where he worked as the studio host for the NBA until the end of his
career. During his career at ESPN, Scott changed sports broadcasting from very
professional to a more casual style. He pioneered several catchphrases
including “Boo-Yah,” “Hollah,” and “As cool as the other side of the pillow.”
According
to his obituary a public viewing will be held January 9 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m.
at Providence Baptist Church on Glenwood Avenue in Raleigh. The funeral will be
held at the same church on January 10 at 11 a.m. He will be buried at Raleigh Memorial
Park.
