The 1983 Green Bay Southwest High School graduate often mentions her hometown and Wisconsin as the host of “Sports Center.”
After 25 years at ESPN, Green Bay native John Anderson is leaving the cable sports company. The "SportsCenter" host announced Wednesday on "The Inside Wisconsin Show" podcast that he will retire at the end of June when his contract expires. “I decided that this would be the end. I will leave the company. I'm leaving 'SportsCenter,' so to speak," Anderson said in a clip posted to social media by Inside Wisconsin, with his memories of the Green Bay Packers and Wisconsin Badgers as well as multiple Emmy Awards visible behind him. Anderson, who joined ESPN in 1999, said he would continue to cover select track and field events, including the Boston and New York marathons. “I feel like it was a good run and the surgery was a turning point.
I don't know if I've missed it yet, but it's taken its toll and I still want to be able to perform to the best of my ability, I don't know if at 26 or 27 I have the stamina to do it. “Doing it again, so that’s enough for me,” he said in the recording. Anderson said he didn't know what would happen next or whether he would return to Wisconsin or elsewhere, but he said he had "some things on fire. “Green Bay Southwest High School graduate with his action figure Anderson grew up in Green Bay and graduated from Green Bay Southwest High School in 1983. While hosting "SportsCenter," she frequently referenced her hometown and Wisconsin, mentioning, for example, that her high school graduation was at the Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena when she was featured in a basketball clip.
“I want people to remember that I'm from here,” he said in a 2010 interview with the Green Bay Press-Gazette as he returned to Southwest High School to accept his first outstanding student award. “I think there’s something to be said about that. You know, they always say that when you're successful, don't forget where you came from. On the other hand, it's nice that people where you have roots don't forget that you were here. That same year, he was also honored by the Green Bay Bullfrogs (now the Green Bay Rockers) for John Anderson's Bobblehead Night at Joannes Stadium, where the first 500 fans won a statue of him at age 14 as his team, Green Bay Babe Ruth won. the 1979 city championship.
In 2018, he wrote a touching and heartfelt article about his childhood in Green Bay when it was announced that the Sears store on the city's west side would be closing. Back in town, he also counts Al's Hamburger among his favorite restaurants. Anderson graduated from the University of Missouri's journalism school in 1and went on air in Tulsa, Oklahoma and Phoenix before being hired at ESPN. He also hosted ABC's extreme obstacle course series "Wipeout." In 2021, he and De Pere's Trevor Thomas launched "The Inside Wisconsin Show," an audio and video podcast about all things Wisconsin, with a focus on sports and sports life.
You must be logged in to post a comment.