Following an extended battle with cancer, long-time ESPN anchor Stuart Scott passed away at the age of 49 on January 4. Scott was best-known for his work on SportsCenter, though also extensively covered the NBA and the NFL, as well as contributed to ESPN the Magazine.

After graduating from the University of North Carolina in 1987 with a degree in speech communication, Scott went to work as a news and sports reporter for a number of local stations in the Carolinas and in Florida. In 1993 he was hired on at ESPN2 and replaced Keith Olbermann as the host of SportsNight.

Scott’s unique style was peppered with catchphrases such as “Cool as the other side of the pillow,” making him one of the most memorable faces at ESPN; he also introduced the word “booyah” to the American vernacular.

In 2007, Scott was diagnosed with cancer after doctors found tumors during a routine appendectomy. He underwent surgery and chemotherapy, though the cancer returned in 2011 and again in 2013. He was honored at the 2014 ESPY Awards with the Jimmy V Award and is sure to be remembered by a quote from his acceptance speech, “When you die, it does not mean that you lose to cancer. You beat cancer by how you live, why you live, and the manner in which you live.”