The man who really lived up to being "as cool as the other side of the pillow" was the man who brought the phrase to life.
Stuart Scott. Upstanding individual seems like an understatement, but it's the best I've got. It's a shame that I was never able to know him personally, but like many other fans and viewers of him, Stuart Scott has inspired me. Doug Ulman, president and CEO of the Livestrong Foundation, stated, "One thing Stuart may never really understand is the impact that he has had on people all around the world." When I heard the news, I was stunned. Instantly shocked and heartbroken. What Stuart Scott brought to the organization of ESPN and to the world of sports is indescribable... And that's not even the most upstanding part of his life. Many who knew him personally spoke on Scott's role as a father and just as a person in general.
Many of Stuart Scott's colleagues spoke on the father that he was to his two daughters, Taelor and Sydni. They spoke more on his passion of being a dad than any other. Sage Steele said, "Those girls are the reason why he fought for as long as he did. They are the reason he lived his life before he got sick and definitely after he got sick." Many of his colleagues spoke on how he didn't care if he would be the dad who would at times embarrass his daughters, he wanted them to know the love he had for them. Scott Van Pelt spoke on this and said, "He would always talk about them cause they’re his heart. So much pride. The love is beyond, any parent would understand, but his was just so profound and so evident and so willing to share in a way that it might be embarrassing to his daughters, but he didn’t give a …." Tom Jackson and Keyshawn Johnson spoke on NFL Sunday Countdown Sunday morning and mentioned about how often he would talk about his daughters. They were the light to his life.
So much of Stuart Scott's life will forever be remembered. Yes, he most definitely had an impact within the world of sports. When I say the world of sports I don't just mean how he impacted the game of basketball or football or how he may have inspired a few athletes here and there. Sports goes way beyond the court and the field and that's something that Scott understood. Just think about the number of those who have watched him over the years on Sportscenter, NFL Primetime or Monday Night Countdown... He did nothing short of inspire people all over. Cris Carter spoke on how he first met Stuart when he was a football player. "But the number one thing for me as person who wanted to be a broadcaster; he was a role model for me. He talked on Sportscenter like me and my friends talked. He did it his way and was great at it. So for me as a colleague and before we became a colleague I’m not ashamed to say that Stu, he won’t even know this, he was a role model for me and hundreds of other African American journalists/athletes now who wanna be legitimate and want people to take what we say seriously just like him." I think he knew his impact, CC, he knew.
Stuart Scott was a very intriguing individual to watch on Sportscenter. From the "Boo-Yah!" to the "as cool as the other side of the pillow," he added his very own spin to every single thing. That's what made him so fun to watch. I mean, he was the reason that I stayed up at times to get a dose of Sportscenter. The liveliness that he brought, the energy, the enthusiasm will forever be missed. Cris Carter said it best when he said, "there is no next man up at ESPN,. There will never be another Stu Scott." There most certainly will not and as much as we will all miss him, we can be grateful of the engraving that he all left on us.
In November of 2007 is when Scott's life changed forever... But of course you would have never been able to tell what he was going through because he never let it keep him down. He was the true definition of a fighter. Scott stated that his first thoughts when hearing that he had cancer were that he was going to die. Point blank. There it is. Nothing else says harsh reality quite like that. Stuart Scott fought the battle of cancer and won. He won. He said, "I've been fightin' it for seven years so that sucks. You've had to deal with it for seven years, but I've been fightin' it for seven years so that's good. Seven years you've battled it. If losing the battle is passing away then I guess I haven't lost the battle."
Stuart Scott may have physically left us here on earth, but his legacy is something will live forever.
One so genuine, so passionate.
Now, we all know that anyone has the ability to put up any kind of front on social media. You can act like you like anyone, feel any kind of way, but the reaction that many, MANY had today as they learned the news of Stuart Scott's passing is something that you cannot just fake. Thousands and thousands of tweets poured out with the hashtag "BooYah." Over 200,000 posts were made on Instagram in honor of him. Iconic figures sent out their respects. Erin Andrews, Sage Steele, Dickie V, Ray Lewis, Michael Jordan, Trey Wingo, professional teams from every league, athletes of every sport. LeBron James stated in his Instagram post that he was "deeply saddened because only will he not be replaced as a anchor or reporter, but more than that, as a genuine, cool person. What you did for our culture, bringing that swag to reporting, can only be copied (which I hear it today on tv watching sports)." The response that we all saw today was a reflection of how Stuart Scott lived his life.
A few of the other guys from NFL Sunday Countdown offered up their words of respect:
Chris Berman said, "If anybody was more full of life, I haven’t met him or her. Now full of life doesn’t mean the most gregarious one at the party, full of life means someone who battled cancer head on three times. Never lost his great attitude about beating it and never lost his drive and energy in fighting it. Full of life in the way that he was a dad to his daughters. Full of life in the way he worked with all of us here. And full of life in the way that he just lit up the tv screen for all of you out there and frankly all of us here." Chris Berman being one who has been with ESPN from the very beginning knows first hand the impact that he had on this organization.
Tom Jackson said, "It’s easy to think of the courage that he showed as he fought cancer, but I’m going to remember him for the true professional that he was. The good kind person that he was. The dad that he was. I think he took more pride in that than anything else."
Keyshawn Johnson said, "I look back on my rookie year when I was drafted in the National Football League. First commercial I ever shot was with Stu, Kobe Bryant and myself and it was for ESPN and Sportscenter. One of the things that Stu told me when I first took this job was to not change who I was, be exactly who I’m supposed to be."
One of my most favorite things that have been done for Stuart Scott throughout his fight, his journey, has to do with Suzy Kolber and the Monday Night Countdown crew. Every Monday Night as the crew would be making their game picks Suzy Kolber would be the one who made her pick not only for her, but for Stu as well. As Stuart's battle became tougher and more strenuous on him, the travel and the amount of strength it took to carry out such a task became too difficult to complete, but his opinion still mattered to us all because that's the kind of wisdom and insight that we knew Stuart had.
NFL Countdown holds a special place in my heart and this is the image of Stuart Scott that I will forever remember.
During Stu Scott's battle with cancer he not only went through hard days of chemotherapy treament and medical treatments, he took to the gym. The gym was symbolic to Stuart. Robin Roberts said that "Stuart took to the gym to treat his body and his spirit through mixed martial arts and cross training workouts. It was physical as well as symbolic. His way of continuing the battle. Through it all he kept to working, exhausted, but unyielding."
Stuart Scott accepted the Jimmy V Perservance ESPY award in 2014 and gave a speech so near and dear to our hearts. "When you die that does not mean that you lose to cancer. You beat cancer by how you live, why you live and in the manner in which you live. So live, live, fight like hell and when you get too tired to fight, then lay down, rest and let somebody else fight for you." The crazy thing is, most didn't know that the week just previous to this ESPY show, Stuart had spent 10 days in the hospital, went through four surgeries in a span of seven days, suffered from kidney failure and liver complications. Something that most of us can never even imagine going through much less flying out to Los Angeles and giving a speech to inspire so many. SO many.
I can only wish that I had the privilege of know Stuart Scott personally, but as someone who has dreamt of going into the field of broadcasting and journalism for quite sometime, he has been one that I have always looked up to. The boo-yahs will be missed by many like myself. I can only hope to take Stu's words to heart and be my own person just trying to make a dream come true. That seemed to be Stuart Scott's thing and what he wanted his advice to be to many... Be you. Do you and do your thing.
Stuart said in his speech, "Everyday I am reminded that our life's journey is really about the people who touch us."
May we be reminded everyday that YOU, Stuart Scott, are the one who touched us.
My condolences to his family, friends and the ones who meant most to him. Boo Yah.
Robin Roberts' tribute to Stuart Scott:
http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=12118361
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