John Brenkus died Saturday.
Late Sunday night, the news came down that the Sports Science founder had passed after a long battle with depression. He was just 54.
If you’ve been around sports media even a little, you know John Brenkus wasn’t just another guy with a show. Sports Science wasn’t your usual highlight reel. It changed the game. Brenkus and his team went beyond the surface, breaking down the why and how behind plays in ways nobody else was doing.
In the hours after his death was announced, SportsCenter’s Kelsey Riggs Cuff and Randy Scott paid heartfelt tribute, reminding us all how much Brenkus’s work changed the way we watch sports.
“Brenkus was known for demonstrating scientific principles through sports during his segments and shows,” Riggs Cuff said. “Often having professional athletes participate alongside him… John Brenkus was an innovator, an entertainer, and an educator. He will be missed by many. He was just 54 years old.”
Having had a night to digest the tragedy, Scott opened Monday morning’s SportsCenter with a heartfelt reflection.
“If you watched or consumed ESPN — really in any capacity — from 2007 to 2017, you saw the show that he created and hosted, Sports Science,” Scott began. “The show won six Sports Emmy Awards. And John was uniquely talented and singularly brilliant at not only analyzing sports, but then translating sports and science to generations of fans in memorable ways. Because John was memorable.”
Scott also used the moment to remind everyone about the importance of mental health.
“If you’re a loved one, or a friend, or a former co-worker or colleague is suffering, or just needs someone to talk to, call or text 988, using any phone that you can get your hands on,” Scott continued. “You’re not alone. And this world is a better place with you in it. This world was a better place with John Brenkus in it.”
The SportsCenter tributes were honest and heartfelt. They gave Brenkus his due, and they didn’t shy away from the part we still don’t talk about enough. Mental health isn’t a footnote. It’s part of the story. It was part of his. SportsCenter stopped and said, out loud, that this stuff matters. That mental health matters. That John Brenkus mattered.
And they did it poignantly.