Longtime Philadelphia high school sports reporter Ted Silary has passed away at the age of 72.
For multiple decades, Silary was the defining voice of Philadelphia high school sports. Between his time at The Philadelphia Bulletin and then The Philadelphia Daily News, Silary set the standard for reporting on high school sports in the area. And his website was like an encyclopedia — the ultimate source of information for anything related to Philadelphia high school sports.
“The site, a Mount Everest of information staring at you right from the home page, wasn’t just living history. It was a bulletin board for a community,” Mike Jensen of The Philadelphia Inquirer penned in his 2019 article shortly after Silary announced that he would no longer be adding to the page.
It didn’t matter who you were. If you played high school sports in the area, Silary knew who you were. Not only did he promote student-athletes and their stories, but he was fair and never critical.
“Maybe the best part of the site is that you didn’t have to be the best player in the city to get your recognition. It’s one thing to have a list of top Philadelphia scorers from 2000 through 2015,” Jensen wrote. “It’s quite another to list everyone who scored at least 15 points a game.”
As soon as news spread of Silary’s passing, tributes began to pour in for the Philadelphia high school sports legend.
Rest in Power Ted Silary. What an advocate you were for young people. Thank you for your foundation. https://t.co/cHKXGbVruR
— Julian Hartwell McFadden (@CoachJulesFadd) May 18, 2023
https://twitter.com/Tweets_By_Zo/status/1659234307381026816?s=20
I can't count how many times I've heard Philly hoopers say, "Growing up, I always wanted to play better when Ted was there." I was never fortunate enough to meet Ted but his impact is profound- a bright light in HS sports coverage. https://t.co/1IPAcXWFWt
— Sam Cohn (@samdcohn) May 18, 2023
[The Philadelphia Inquirer; image from TedSilary.com]