Stuart Scott's passing last month has prompted plenty of reflection about the former SportsCenter anchor's heavy influence on the world of sports broadcasting. Scott wasn't just a black anchor on television: He brought a style and a sense of personality that changed the rules of the game for everyone that followed.
Among his many catchphrases is one that stands out among all the others: "Boo-yah!"
In Scott's memoir, Every Day I Fight, which will be published in March, he explains the origins of Boo-yah! as something that occurred almost by accident. Scott writes that while in high school, he, his best friend Fred and an older neighbor named Mr. G were hanging out. Mr. G asked if they had heard the thunder from last night's storm. When the boys said no, Mr. G went on:
"You didn't hear it?” he said, according to an excerpt in The Washington Post. “Goodness, it was loud. It was like: Boo-yah!"
The boys laughed and asked Mr. G to repeat it, and he did just as loudly: Boo-yah! Thus was born the iconic phrase.
Scott's death in January came after a long, tough battle with cancer. He was honored by many in the sports world, from fellow anchors at SportsCenter contributing fond memories of Scott to his alma mater, North Carolina, making a moving tribute before one of its basketball games.
In that game -- a win for the Tar Heels -- broadcaster Dick Vitale also tributed Scott with several appropriations of "Boo-yah!"
One of Scott's last appearances were at last summer's ESPYs, when he was honored with the Jimmy V Award for Perseverance. The speech is seven minutes long, but it's worth every second.
