Scott’s legacy honored
If you were to come try out for the USC club men’s lacrosse team this spring, you’d hear a variety of strange commentary from me and some of my teammates after noteworthy plays.
“Stuffed ’em like a turkey dinner!” sophomore goalie Josh Blockstein will holler after a point-blank save; “Believe me sweetie! I got enough to feed the needy!” I’ll shout back the next time someone rips a shot by him; and anytime we see a nifty pass assist on a goal, Josh and I will sing in perfect harmony: “Len’ me some sugar, I am your neighbah!”
It wasn’t until this winter break that I realized how much one man had influenced the dynamic of our lacrosse practices. It’s a feeling I think any athlete or sports fan can relate to because this man truly changed the way we enjoy sports.
Stuart Scott passed away at age 49 on Jan. 4 after a long battle with cancer. The legendary sportscaster was one of the original anchors for ESPN’s flagship show SportsCenter and was arguably the best ever in terms of enthusiasm and catchphrases.
If I have one critique of the media’s coverage and the sports world’s reaction to his death, it’s that almost everyone has misquoted Scott’s most signature catchphrase: “Boo-Yow!” Most tributes spelled it “Booyah!” and #booyah was trending on Twitter but former ESPN colleague Rich Eisen pointed out that Scott spelled it with a “yow” and not a “yah” on his notes. It’s a subtle change in pronunciation but the distinction, to me, epitomizes Scott perfectly.
Scott was a little different than every other sportscaster when he first arrived at ESPN. Not only was he a black man in an almost entirely white network, but he also really brought a unique culture and style as an African-American while reading sports highlights.
He referenced hip-hop lyrics — “that was as hardcore as Wu-Tang Clan on steroids!” He impersonated southern Gospel preachers — “can I get a witness from the congregation?!” He made absurd comparisons — “just call him butter cuz he’s on a roll!” Best of all, he easily trademarked the most clever and spot-on simile for any clutch performance — “as cool as the other side of the pillow.” And I haven’t even mentioned his series of This Is SportsCenter commercials.
Not everyone loved Scott’s urban style right off the bat, including executives at ESPN. But Scott didn’t give in to the pressure to conform to the status quo. Instead, he boldly stayed true to his identity, even publishing a column on ESPN’s website explaining the cultural significance of the style. His professional courage earned the respect of many of his fellow broadcasters — Keith Olbermann’s tribute video was particularly touching — and the style eventually caught on.
Today, because of Scott, I can get away with quoting The Notorious B.I.G. and OutKast during a lacrosse practice. More importantly, Scott served as an inspiration for both African-American sports fans, as well as minority sports journalists.
“He was a trailblazer,” ESPN anchor Stan Verrett said in an obituary by ABC. “He did not shy away from the fact that he was a black man and that allowed the rest of us who came along to just be ourselves.”
Travis Waldron, a reporter for ThinkProgress.org, wrote that Scott helped ESPN “reach a demographic — young people in general but particularly black males who rarely see themselves and their culture or style represented in the sports media — that it hadn’t connected with before,” adding that ESPN is now the best in the industry in terms of racial and gender diversity on staff.
It’s impossible to fully quantify the impact Scott had on the growth of the network.
But looking back on his career certainly makes me wonder what the sports world would look like today if he were never discovered. Would ESPN have grown to the top of the world anyways? Would our society be as obsessed with sports 365 days a year? Would the Daily Trojan even make room for a sports column every day? Would I have dreamed about becoming a sportscaster once I realized I wasn’t cut out for professional sports and have applied to USC’s journalism school?
Though there’s no way to answer that, I will say this.
As I just alluded to, Scott had the dream job. I don’t mean that he figuratively had my dream job, I literally mean that I would sit and watch SportsCenter reruns just about every day for years while growing up imagining that I would one day be able to do that.
In some ways, Scott was very lucky. He was blessed with the necessary talent and opportunity to talk about sports for a living. That was his career, his livelihood.
But his passion for what he did didn’t seem to be out of some ego trip from being on national TV. I always felt like he truly, genuinely wanted to make people happy when he went on air.
The amount of love in his heart is not best exemplified by career, though. For that, his battle with cancer is the best piece of evidence. It revealed that his true passions in life weren’t sports or entertainment, but his daughters, Taelor and Sydni.
I think it’s almost impossible for a motivational speech to compare with Jim Valvano’s epic “Don’t Give Up, Don’t Ever Give Up,” speech at ESPN’s 1993 ESPY Awards, but Scott’s speech while accepting the Jimmy Valvano Perseverance Award at last summer’s ESPY Awards did just that.
“When you die, that does not mean you lose to cancer,” he said. “You beat cancer by how you live, why you live and the manner in which you live.”
The eloquence of such a statement is almost jarring, especially when compared to the aforementioned six-letter exclamation for which he is most famous. But it got even better.
“The best thing I have ever done, the best thing I will ever do,” he said, “is be a dad to Taelor and Sydni. It’s true.”
So in conclusion, my takeaway from the celebration of Stuart Scott’s life is not necessarily to “follow your passion,” “don’t give up on your dream,” “do what you love,” or some other cliche about career advice.
Sure, he had a great job, but his life was so much more than the catchphrases and commercials. He did what he loved, but he also did what people loved him to do. It took some time to figure out what exactly he was saying, but sports fans truly did love him.
Before you go all-in on following your passion, Scott would ask you “why you live” for these passions or what purpose you find in them. He knew his why.
It’s impossible for me to comprehend what Taelor, 19, and Sydni, 15, are going through. I can’t even imagine the pain of losing a parent at this age. But when I think of Scott himself, I feel a sense of satisfaction in the amount of life he packed into his 49 years.
I’m tremendously grateful that I got to watch him growing up and that I get to watch and cover sports in the world he helped create. I can still hear his “Boo-Yow!” call loud and clear in my head, with more exuberance and more swag than anyone else’s imitation.
No one ever said it better. No one ever will.
Luke Holthouse is sophomore majoring in policy, planning and development and broadcast/digital journalism.