breaking on ESPN........ 
http://www.espn.com/espn/story/_/id...iar-air-face-espn-nearly-30-years-died-age-61
http://www.espn.com/espn/story/_/id...iar-air-face-espn-nearly-30-years-died-age-61
Damn Man :( John Saunders has passed away..
- Thread starter ArsenalCannon357
- Start date
Damn. I was watching 1st Take when this news broke.. RIP
I was about to post this,2016 needs to end......ASAP
rest in peace
great great broadcaster!
Only reason I watched Sports Reporters.
I used to laugh every time he side eyed Lupica.
great great broadcaster!
Only reason I watched Sports Reporters.
I used to laugh every time he side eyed Lupica.
Fuck! RIP
Damn he was only 61. Rest in peace.
Peace,
Horrible news.
RIP brother.
Horrible news.
RIP brother.
WTF!!!
John Saunders, one of the familiar on-air faces of ESPN for nearly 30 years, has died. He was 61.
Saunders hosted studio and play-by-play programming. He covered college football, basketball and the NHL for the network, in addition to anchoring SportsCenter. He was also host of The Sports Reporters.
Born in Canada, Saunders was an all-star defenseman in the junior hockey leagues of Montreal and played at Western Michigan before becoming one of the most prominent broadcasters of his time.
Saunders was a founding member of The V Foundation for Cancer Research and served on the board of directors.
"John was an extraordinary talent and his friendly, informative style has been a warm welcome to sports fans for decades," said John Skipper, president of ESPN and co-chairman of Disney Media Networks, in a statement. "His wide range of accomplishments across numerous sports and championship events is among the most impressive this industry has ever seen. More importantly, John was a beloved and devoted family man who cared deeply about people and causes, as evidenced by his long-standing efforts as a passionate board member for The V Foundation for Cancer Research.
"He was one of the most significant and influential members of the ESPN family, as a colleague and mentor, and he will be sorely missed. Our thoughts are with his loved ones at this extremely difficult time."
Saunders joined ESPN in December 1986 to anchor SportsCenter. But he became a voice on college basketball, the WNBA and hosted ESPN's coverage of the Stanley Cupplayoffs from 1993-2004. He also worked on coverage of the World Series and Major League Baseball All-Star game.
Saunders is survived by wife Wanda and daughters Aleah and Jenna.
Saunders hosted studio and play-by-play programming. He covered college football, basketball and the NHL for the network, in addition to anchoring SportsCenter. He was also host of The Sports Reporters.
Born in Canada, Saunders was an all-star defenseman in the junior hockey leagues of Montreal and played at Western Michigan before becoming one of the most prominent broadcasters of his time.
Saunders was a founding member of The V Foundation for Cancer Research and served on the board of directors.
"John was an extraordinary talent and his friendly, informative style has been a warm welcome to sports fans for decades," said John Skipper, president of ESPN and co-chairman of Disney Media Networks, in a statement. "His wide range of accomplishments across numerous sports and championship events is among the most impressive this industry has ever seen. More importantly, John was a beloved and devoted family man who cared deeply about people and causes, as evidenced by his long-standing efforts as a passionate board member for The V Foundation for Cancer Research.
"He was one of the most significant and influential members of the ESPN family, as a colleague and mentor, and he will be sorely missed. Our thoughts are with his loved ones at this extremely difficult time."
Saunders joined ESPN in December 1986 to anchor SportsCenter. But he became a voice on college basketball, the WNBA and hosted ESPN's coverage of the Stanley Cupplayoffs from 1993-2004. He also worked on coverage of the World Series and Major League Baseball All-Star game.
Saunders is survived by wife Wanda and daughters Aleah and Jenna.
John Saunders, one of ESPN’s most visible and versatile commentators and a founding member of the board of directors for The V Foundation for Cancer Research, has passed away. He was 61.
ESPN President John Skipper said: “John was an extraordinary talent and his friendly, informative style has been a warm welcome to sports fans for decades. His wide range of accomplishments across numerous sports and championship events is among the most impressive this industry has ever seen. More importantly, John was a beloved and devoted family man who cared deeply about people and causes, as evidenced by his long-standing efforts as a passionate board member for The V Foundation for Cancer Research. He was one of the most significant and influential members of the ESPN family, as a colleague and mentor, and he will be sorely missed. Our thoughts are with his loved ones at this extremely difficult time.”
Saunders, who hosted and handled play-by-play for a variety of sports, joined ESPN in 1986 and was one of the company’s most tenured commentators.
Saunders was host of ABC’s Saturday studio coverage of college football and select editions of ESPN’s College Football Live and ESPN’s college basketball studio coverage. He hosted The Sports Reporters, the Sunday morning roundtable of sports journalists, since December 2001. In recent years, he also co-hosted NFL highlight segments on Sunday night editions of SportsCenter during the football season.
As part of his role in ESPN’s college football, Saunders anchored studio coverage from the College Football Playoff National Championship and hosted the postgame trophy presentation.
A former colleague and close friend of the late Jim Valvano, Saunders was a founding member and served on the board of directors for The V Foundation for Cancer Research, and was actively involved in many of the organization’s fundraising events and initiatives.
At ESPN, Saunders also called play-by-play for college basketball since 1990, WNBA from 1999-2001 and NBDL games in 2001. He hosted the NHL Stanley Cup playoffs (1993-2004), Baseball Tonight (1990-93), SportsCenter’s coverage of the Final Four (1991-93), the World Series (1990-92) and Major League Baseball’s All-Star Game (1990-92). He also hosted Rendez-Vous ’87, the two-game series between the NHL All-Stars and the Soviets, and occasionally hosted ESPN’s NHL telecasts in 1987-88.
Saunders’ work on ABC started in 1990, hosting NCAA basketball telecasts beginning that first year, college football telecasts since 1992 and NHL action (1993, 1999-2004). He served as a contributor to Wide World of Sports, beginning in 1990, and also provided play-by-play of NCAA basketball games (since 1992).
Saunders joined ESPN in December 1986 as a SportsCenter anchor. He came to ESPN from WMAR-TV in Baltimore, where he had worked since 1982 as an anchor of three daily sports reports. He also hosted the Baltimore Orioles pre-game program Orioles on Deck and provided analysis for Baltimore Colts preseason games. WMAR was honored by The Associated Press and UPI in 1983 and ’85 for having the best sportscast in Baltimore.
A native of Canada, Saunders called play-by-play for the Toronto Raptors on CKVR-TV and CITY-TV (1995-2001). He was the main sports anchor for CITY-TV in Toronto from 1980-82 as well as ATV News in New Brunswick (1979-80) and CKNY-TV in Ontario (1978-79). In 1978, he was the news director for CKNS Radio in Espanola, Ontario.
An all-star defenseman in the Montreal junior leagues, Saunders received a scholarship and played hockey at Western Michigan from 1974-76. He then transferred to Ryerson Polytechnical in Toronto, where he was an all-star on the Ontario University Athletic Association.
While attending school, Saunders provided news reports for CHOO-Radio in Ajax, Ontario, and continued to play hockey. Saunders’ brother, Bernie, played left wing for the Quebec Nordiques in the NHL from 1979-1981.
Saunders was an active mentor to young and aspiring journalists. Just last week, he spoke at the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) convention in Washington, D.C.
Saunders is survived by his wife, Wanda, and two daughters, Aleah and Jenna.
http://screengrabber.deadspin.com/hannah-storm-announces-live-on-sportscenter-that-john-s-1785085661
ESPN President John Skipper said: “John was an extraordinary talent and his friendly, informative style has been a warm welcome to sports fans for decades. His wide range of accomplishments across numerous sports and championship events is among the most impressive this industry has ever seen. More importantly, John was a beloved and devoted family man who cared deeply about people and causes, as evidenced by his long-standing efforts as a passionate board member for The V Foundation for Cancer Research. He was one of the most significant and influential members of the ESPN family, as a colleague and mentor, and he will be sorely missed. Our thoughts are with his loved ones at this extremely difficult time.”
Saunders, who hosted and handled play-by-play for a variety of sports, joined ESPN in 1986 and was one of the company’s most tenured commentators.
Saunders was host of ABC’s Saturday studio coverage of college football and select editions of ESPN’s College Football Live and ESPN’s college basketball studio coverage. He hosted The Sports Reporters, the Sunday morning roundtable of sports journalists, since December 2001. In recent years, he also co-hosted NFL highlight segments on Sunday night editions of SportsCenter during the football season.
As part of his role in ESPN’s college football, Saunders anchored studio coverage from the College Football Playoff National Championship and hosted the postgame trophy presentation.
A former colleague and close friend of the late Jim Valvano, Saunders was a founding member and served on the board of directors for The V Foundation for Cancer Research, and was actively involved in many of the organization’s fundraising events and initiatives.
At ESPN, Saunders also called play-by-play for college basketball since 1990, WNBA from 1999-2001 and NBDL games in 2001. He hosted the NHL Stanley Cup playoffs (1993-2004), Baseball Tonight (1990-93), SportsCenter’s coverage of the Final Four (1991-93), the World Series (1990-92) and Major League Baseball’s All-Star Game (1990-92). He also hosted Rendez-Vous ’87, the two-game series between the NHL All-Stars and the Soviets, and occasionally hosted ESPN’s NHL telecasts in 1987-88.
Saunders’ work on ABC started in 1990, hosting NCAA basketball telecasts beginning that first year, college football telecasts since 1992 and NHL action (1993, 1999-2004). He served as a contributor to Wide World of Sports, beginning in 1990, and also provided play-by-play of NCAA basketball games (since 1992).
Saunders joined ESPN in December 1986 as a SportsCenter anchor. He came to ESPN from WMAR-TV in Baltimore, where he had worked since 1982 as an anchor of three daily sports reports. He also hosted the Baltimore Orioles pre-game program Orioles on Deck and provided analysis for Baltimore Colts preseason games. WMAR was honored by The Associated Press and UPI in 1983 and ’85 for having the best sportscast in Baltimore.
A native of Canada, Saunders called play-by-play for the Toronto Raptors on CKVR-TV and CITY-TV (1995-2001). He was the main sports anchor for CITY-TV in Toronto from 1980-82 as well as ATV News in New Brunswick (1979-80) and CKNY-TV in Ontario (1978-79). In 1978, he was the news director for CKNS Radio in Espanola, Ontario.
An all-star defenseman in the Montreal junior leagues, Saunders received a scholarship and played hockey at Western Michigan from 1974-76. He then transferred to Ryerson Polytechnical in Toronto, where he was an all-star on the Ontario University Athletic Association.
While attending school, Saunders provided news reports for CHOO-Radio in Ajax, Ontario, and continued to play hockey. Saunders’ brother, Bernie, played left wing for the Quebec Nordiques in the NHL from 1979-1981.
Saunders was an active mentor to young and aspiring journalists. Just last week, he spoke at the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) convention in Washington, D.C.
Saunders is survived by his wife, Wanda, and two daughters, Aleah and Jenna.
http://screengrabber.deadspin.com/hannah-storm-announces-live-on-sportscenter-that-john-s-1785085661
RIP
Horrible news
RIP
RIP
feel for his wife & kids...just heard it on talk show radio ..i was outside cutting my grass listening to Dan le Batard show...
dude must have been very private ...seems like nobody knew he was that sick...
keep telling y`all ...no matter how young u are ...if u have the means dont put shit off...
reach out & speak to ur family & kids everyday even if u dont live together...this life thing is crazy....
This is sad sad sad. He was a giant and one of the best to ever do it in a manner that was humble, yet didn't pull punched. Him AND Stuart Scott gone within 2 years of each other; black sports journalism had lost GIANTS. RIP .
Man FUCK 2016! Lost my Mother, about to lose my brother and so many more Icons are leaving us this year. This has to be the most depressing year in history...
RIP Mr. Saunders...
RIP Mr. Saunders...
RIP
Damn man.... I grew up watching him on ESPN..... You take these guys for granted..... RIP.
make sure to watch His & Hers today
Man FUCK 2016! Lost my Mother, about to lose my brother and so many more Icons are leaving us this year. This has to be the most depressing year in history...
RIP Mr. Saunders...
Damn man...That's a lot....
And RIP to John Saunders. Sad story.
Sucks man.. Stay strong brother. Im sorry for your loss.Man FUCK 2016! Lost my Mother, about to lose my brother and so many more Icons are leaving us this year. This has to be the most depressing year in history...
RIP Mr. Saunders...