Stuart Orlando Scott (July 19, 1965 – January 4, 2015) was an American sportscaster and anchor on ESPN, including on SportsCenter. Known for his hip-hop style and use of catchphrases, Scott was also a regular for the network in its National Basketball Association (NBA) and National Football League (NFL) coverage.

Scott was born in Chicago and resided in the back of London Towne Houses on Chicago's Southeast side. After relocating to North Carolina in his youth, Scott graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He began his career with various local television stations before joining ESPN in 1993. Although there were already accomplished African-American sportscasters, his blending of hip hop with sportscasting was unique for television. By 2008, he was a staple in ESPN's programming, was born in Chicago, Illinois on July 19, 1965. His parents were O. Ray and Jacqueline Scott. When he was 7, Scott and his family moved to Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Scott had a brother named Stephen and two sisters named Susan and Synthia. In high school, he was a captain of his football team, ran track, served as Vice President of the Student Council, and was the Sergeant at Arms of the school's Key Club. Scott was inducted into the Richard J. Reynolds High School Hall of Fame during a ceremony on February 6, 2015, which took place during the Reynolds/Mt. Tabor (the two high schools that Scott attended) basketball game. of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity and was part of the on-air talent at WXYC.

Early career

Following graduation, Scott worked as a news reporter and weekend sports anchor at WPDE-TV in Florence, South Carolina from 1987 until 1988. Scott came up with the phrase "as cool as the other side of the pillow" while working his first job at WPDE. After this, Scott worked as a news reporter at WRAL-TV 5 in Raleigh, North Carolina from 1988 until 1990. WRAL Sports anchor Jeff Gravley recalled there was a "natural bond" between Scott and the sports department. Scott became one of the few African-American personalities who was not a former professional athlete. Scott was a regular in the This Is SportsCenter commercials.

In 2002, Scott was named studio host for the NBA on ESPN. He became lead host in 2008, when he also began at ABC in the same capacity for its NBA coverage, which included the NBA Finals. Additionally, Scott anchored SportsCenters prime-time coverage from the site of NBA post-season games. In 2004, per the request of U.S. troops, Scott and fellow SportsCenter co-anchors hosted a week of programs originating from Kuwait for ESPN's SportsCenter: Salute the Troops.

thumb|Scott at ESPN The Weekend, 2008

Style

While there were already successful African-American sportscasters, Scott blended hip-hop culture and sports in a way that had never been seen before on television. He talked in the same manner as fans would at home. Michael Wilbon wrote that Scott allowed his personality to infuse the coverage and his emotion to pour out.

Scott also integrated pop culture references into his reports. One commentator remembered his style: "he could go from evoking a Baptist preacher riffing during Sunday morning service ('Can I get a witness from the congregation?!'), to quoting Public Enemy frontman Chuck D ('Hear the drummer get WICKED!') In 1999, he was parodied on Saturday Night Live by Tim Meadows. Scott appeared in music videos with the rappers LL Cool J and Luke, and he was cited in "3 Peat", a Lil Wayne song that included the line: "Yeah, I got game like Stuart Scott, fresh out the ESPN shop." Jason Whitlock criticized Scott's use of Jay-Z's alternate nickname, "Jigga", at halftime of Monday Night Football as ridiculous and offensive. Scott never changed his style and ESPN stuck with him.

Catchphrases

Scott became well known for his use of catch phrases, following in the SportsCenter tradition begun by Dan Patrick and Keith Olbermann. He popularized the phrase booyah, which spread from sports into mainstream culture. (According to co-anchor Rich Eisen, Scott actually wrote the phrase as "Boo-yow")

  • "Hallah"
  • "As cool as the other side of the pillow"
  • "Holla at a playa when you see him in the street!"
  • "You ain't gotta go home, but you gotta get the heck outta here."
  • "Make all the kinfolk proud ... Pookie, Ray Ray and Moesha"
  • "It's your world, kid ... The rest of us are still paying rent" They had two daughters together, Taelor and Sydni. Scott lived in Avon, Connecticut. During his Jimmy V Award speech, he told his teenage daughters: "Taelor and Sydni, I love you guys more than I will ever be able to express. You two are my heartbeat. I am standing on this stage here tonight because of you." His daughter, Sydni Scott, was named a Rhodes Scholar in 2022.

Eye injury

Scott was injured when he was hit in the face by a football thrown during a New York Jets mini-camp on April 3, 2002, while filming a special for ESPN, a blow that damaged his cornea. He received surgery but afterwards suffered from ptosis, or drooping of the eyelid. The injury compounded earlier vision problems stemming from keratoconus, making his continued on-air work more demanding. After testing the appendix, doctors learned that he had cancer. By December, Scott—while undergoing chemotherapy—hosted Friday night ESPN NBA coverage and led the coverage of ABC's NBA Christmas Day studio show. Scott worked out while undergoing chemotherapy. He was again diagnosed with cancer on January 14, 2013. After chemotherapy, Scott would do mixed martial arts and/or a P90X workout regimen. Scott told the audience, "When you die, it 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." At the ESPYs, a video was also shown that included scenes of Scott from a clinic room at Johns Hopkins Hospital and other scenes from Scott's life fighting cancer. Scott ended the speech by calling his daughter up to the stage for a hug, "because I need one," and telling the audience to "have a great rest of your night, have a great rest of your life."

Death

On the morning of January 4, 2015, Scott died of appendiceal cancer in his home in Avon, Connecticut, at age 49. Soon after, his foundation for cancer research was created. Scott was laid to rest in Raleigh Memorial Park on January 10, 2015, after a private funeral service at Providence Baptist Church. The public funeral visitation was held the previous evening.

Tributes

ESPN announced: "Stuart Scott, a dedicated family man and one of ESPN's signature SportsCenter anchors, has died after a courageous and inspiring battle with cancer. He was 49." ESPN released a video obituary of Scott. Barack Obama paid tribute to Scott, saying:

thumb|A [[University of North Carolina|UNC student featured on ESPN's broadcast of the Notre Dame-UNC basketball game on January 5, 2015, honoring Scott with his trademark "Boo Yah" saying.]]

A number of National Basketball Association athletes—current and former—paid tribute to Scott, including Stephen Curry, Carmelo Anthony, Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash, Jason Collins, Shaquille O'Neal, Magic Johnson, Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Michael Jordan, Bruce Bowen, Dennis Rodman, James Worthy and others. Other athletes paid tribute including Robert Griffin III, Russell Wilson, Jon Lester, Lance Armstrong, Barry Sanders, J. J. Watt, David Ortiz and Sheryl Swoopes. UNC basketball coach Roy Williams called him a "hero."

Colleagues Hannah Storm and Rich Eisen gave tearful on-air remembrances of Scott on SportsCenter and NFL Network respectively, with Eisen later narrating a package of NFL highlights using his former co-anchor's catchphrases. Also on SportsCenter, Scott Van Pelt and Steve Levy said farewell to Scott and left a chair empty in his honor. Tom Jackson, Cris Carter, Chris Berman, Mike Ditka and Keyshawn Johnson from NFL Countdown shared their memories of Scott.

During Ernie Johnson Jr.'s acceptance speech for his 2015 Sports Emmy Award for Best Studio Host, the TNT and TBS NBA and MLB host gave his award to Scott's daughters, saying it "belongs with Stuart Scott". At the 67th Primetime Emmy Awards and at the 2015 ESPY Awards, Scott was included in the "in memoriam" segment, a rare honor for a sports broadcaster.

On Fox Sports Live on FS1, the broadcast team of Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, Erin Andrews and Chris Myers paid tribute to Stuart Scott from Fox's gamesite. The Fox NFL Sunday crew anchored by Curt Menefee, Terry Bradshaw, Howie Long, Michael Strahan and Jimmy Johnson also paid tribute to Stuart Scott on behalf of Fox Sports, as did Jay Onrait and Dan O'Toole from TSN in Canada.

Legacy

ESPN president John Skipper said Scott's flair and style, which he used to talk about the athletes he was covering, "changed everything." ESPN designated December 4th as 'Stuart Scott Day.'

Cancer advocacy and fundraising event

Following Scott's death, the V Foundation for Cancer Research established the Stuart Scott Memorial Cancer Research Fund. The fund supports cancer research with an emphasis on health equity and increasing representation among researchers. Annual "Boo-Yah! A Celebration of Stuart Scott" fundraising events, held primarily in New York City, have raised millions of dollars for cancer research. These events coincide with ESPN's V Week for Cancer Research and honor Scott.

Documentary film

In 2025, ESPN Films released 30 for 30: Boo-Yah: A Portrait of Stuart Scott. Directed by Andre Gaines, the documentary features previously unseen archival footage, including Scott's personal home videos, and interviews from family members, colleagues, and athletes. The film examines Scott's broadcasting career, his cultural influence, his health challenges and his legacy in sports media.

  • Enchanted (2007)
  • Just Wright (2010)

Television

  • The Chris Rock Show (1997)
  • Arli$$ (2000)
  • I Love the '80s (2002)
  • Soul Food (2003)
  • She Spies (2005)
  • I Love the '70s (2003)
  • One on One (2004)
  • Stump the Schwab (2004–06)
  • Dream Job (2004)
  • Teammates (2005)
  • I Love the '90s (2004)
  • I Love the Holidays (2005)
  • I Love Toys (2006)
  • Black to the Future (2009)

Publications

References

Further reading

  • The Stuart Scott Foundation
  • Stuart Scott's Legacy at ESPN.com