Sports Illustrated – While many college football teams took the gridiron Saturday in hopes to continue their march to the College Football Playoff bracket, one of the biggest storylines of Week 11 was the late Ben Herbstreit—the beloved dog of ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit.
Ben, a 10-year-old golden retriever who became a popular figure in college football by traveling alongside Kirk Herbstreit throughout recent seasons, died earlier this week after a battle with cancer.
On Saturday's episode on ESPN's College GameDay, Herbstreit voiced a heartfelt tribute to Ben in a two-minute video montage. Herbstreit was initially going to say a few words before the montage played on the broadcast but was overcome with emotion.
Seeing his longtime partner struggling to get words out, 89-year-old Lee Corso leaned over several times to comfort Herbstreit. It was a pretty special moment for the two colleagues who have worked on the show together since Herbstreit joined in 1996.
“Dogs’ lives are too short. Their only fault, really.” —Agnes Sligh Turnbull
Man was this tough to watch.
Anybody who's ever had a pet knows this feeling all too well. Having them around brings us happiness and joy unlike anything else. But losing them leaves as gutwrenching a void as there is.
“Everyone thinks that their dog is the best dog in the world. And none of them are wrong.” —W.R. Pursche
And anybody familiar with ESPN College Football Gameday knows how much of an integral part Ben the Golden Retriever played to this team on Saturdays. For years now.
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There's another famous saying about dogs: “Such short little lives our pets have to spend with us, and they spend most of it waiting for us to come home each day”, but that wasn't the case for Ben.
From watching just these couple of videos, there's no denying Ben the golden lived a hell of a life.
From getting to travel all over the country with his best bud Kirk- to getting to roll around on the grass at midfield of some of the most hallowed stadiums in sports history, Ben was a special kind of spoiled. But from all accounts, he enjoyed every second of it. The guy loved football. Look at this –
Here was the special segment that ESPN ran on Ben that had Herbstreit in a glass box of emotion
And just when you couldn't get more choked up watching this all unfold, Herbstreit's human best friend, Lee Corso, reached out with a supportive hand on his shoulder.
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Just an all-around cry fest on Saturday. Which you need sometimes. A good cry is a healthy thing. Especially when it's prompted by losing your best friend. Sorry for your loss to the Herbstreit family. Rest In Peace Ben.
“If the kindest souls were rewarded with the longest lives, dogs would outlive us all.”
