John Anderson’s final time anchoring SportsCenter after 25 years at ESPN 🎉

John Anderson’s final time anchoring SportsCenter after 25 years at ESPN 🎉

After 25 years at ESPN, John Anderson hosts his final SportsCenter and signs off one last time after receiving many heartfelt messages.

0:00 Memorable moments
1:39 John Buccigross joins
3:20 Nicole Briscoe stops by
5:00 LeRoy Butler’s surprise
8:20 This Is SportsCenter
10:34 Barry Melrose & Kenny Mayne show appreciation
13:50 Signing off

#ESPN

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I’m here to express on behalf of every sports center anchor John Anderson’s ever worked over the past 25 years our utmost admiration I could try to make you cry but it’s early uh you’ve never let the show down and no one has protected the sports center ESPN Shield the way you have you have been the most consistent reliable co-anchor that I have ever shared the desk with and even through all of that and those serious moments we’ve had some times where we could share a laugh or two sports is on your television I also invented hi everybody happiness is anchoring Sports Center greetings glad to have you here for sports center paed with Steve leevy I am John Anderson one man’s dream will come true as he is named Sports Center Idol he too wants 20 does LA stand a chance I’m John Anderson and I’m really high pitched voice John Anderson officer Anderson officer Levy report to duty you can keep trying but it’s not going we don’t have a Apple box big enough for you buddy we don’t make a mistake right why you staring at me I just want to see what your Viewpoint was going to be the cover models for this year’s ESPN the magazine Body Issue let’s have it well that kind of makes you want to throw up a little bit in your mouth doesn’t it is chicken of the sea tuna fish or chicken um our interceptions bad right I was told there’d be no math here moralizing his team a little bit Yeah leaves I’m not saying it just because you’re sitting next to me but you are my favorite Co thanks for watching I’m Steve Le I’m John Anderson haven’t changed a bit don’t remember any of that happening yeah could be I’m just in a fog tonight there’s only one Loser tonight leaves and that’s America because the second greatest living American is anchoring his his final sports center with you John Anderson our friend and uh just really this one yeah this one’s hitting me pretty hard and there we are you know with doing the John’s with JN you know we’re both Midwest kids John Wisconsin me Western PA uh Eastern Ohio Fly overstate Young People molded by the love of words molded by the NFL and by Golf and by David Letterman and Johnny Carson we just we really locked up in many ways and that’s why it was so fun working with you know Scotty and you leaves and John there just there’s nothing like it uh butcher too kind I look at all this and I think I can’t believe you lost the blue velvet B Blazer I’m so happy that you got another one um listen uh what people people all know how well you write how smart you are what they don’t know is how caring and empathetic you are um as a father as a son you are a two words world class you’re my man Bushi thank you so much John I love you uh and I will and I will miss you oh be well if they only knew we’ll be on the course you call them though you know you can still call them yeah I’m not disappearing in you know in the e but I’ll be around we’ll play you got to give me five aside world class thank you my friend oh my goodness who’s that handsome guy look at that John Anderson Through The Years countown on Wow we live to conb gray hair leafes oh boy we’ll be right back while the Cubs visiting MK tonight 10 and a half back and in last place Am Fam field well it can occasionally resemble Wrigley North that John John come on over here bud walk the red carpet will you come on over to the last I never I never get past the Velvet Rope how does that ever happen I’ll let you in the night small cover charge wow yeah so we’re not going to see the Brewers no we’re going to see the Brewers but why don’t you do them from the lounge you’re going to need that shot she probably that’s fine is but isn’t that exactly how the producers I thought oh well okay we don’t see the Brewers but no we are this time you’ve always said the Brewers it’s not Brewers Nation cuz they no it’s a h a hamlet they don’t have a nation look the icon is here yes the icon I forgot how cold you make it in a studio again dear Lord cheese one Wisconsin child to another behold the power I hear it’s binding you’re like Kenny M bring me the finest meats and cheeses and we will have a clubhouse feed all the land that’s pretty nice I’m so glad I wore dark Socks by the way usually I just have footies on so this is good I was ready prepared for that you’re prepared for this uh we do not share the same we do not share the same baseball team no but if you’d like stick around and watch the Cubs get their brains beat in no uh so you and I do not share our love of baseball teams she likes however yeah do we own cheese heads I do we own cheese hats I don’t wear them because quite frankly they make you look kind of well you should wear them when you attend games entire family there is your entire that’s that’s the that’s core it’s the core Personnel right there the core for that’s the core four that’s when bii and I yeah with my boy Raj who’s watching tonight he’s zooming who’s that uh looy Butler that was at the Packers game in London really induct him into the Hall of Fame uh I inducted him I got to present him for the Green Bay Packer Hall of Fame which was really kind of an amazing thing to do and now he’s he said you can have that one and then um a Canton I’ll keep to myself for some be a little more important well since it’s your night now though yeah he has a message for you oh you’re kidding me hi I’m Pro Football Hall of Fame ly Butler and I thought to myself back in 2007 who should induct me into the Packer Hall of Fame I came up with one name the best sports center anchor John Anderson congratulations my brother 25 years of excellence and yes go pack go very nice yeah that’s amazing he is such such a good guy yep and and it’s funny like when he needed to retire he was he had injuries and stuff and and he said it was like training camp in his alarm went off and his mind said hey it’s time to go to work and his body’s like you go ahead I’m not coming you know and so I I don’t know if mine’s been quite like that but we’re all checking out at the same time but I remember the like time I was put on a show with you I was terrified I was terrified because because I throw pens on occas and you yell no because like you get into this business because you want to be you guys and I wanted to be the Wisconsin I want be a I wanted to be a yeah thank you for everything thank you’re very personally and professionally long ago I don’t remember my first show with John that’s how long ago it was I can’t remember anything about the first show all I know is we we did a lot of them at 1: in the morning yeah a lot of rain delays West Coast negotiated one of the best can we have the cheese deals ever did we get the cheese back any mustard uh by the way for the Packers organization they send their regards and congratulations Sarah special quick yeah very good that’s uh you guys are amazing um will you do the rest of the show no I have the show after you I have the show after zuin would do the end of it for me you know he would want some meats and cheeses it’s not CDs it’s actually fully that’s a solid piece of cheddar right there leaves can you identify cheeses we we have a qu pepper jack you call it SS swis I thought you said SS pepperjack you need to get you I’ll get you some kakana cheese spread with the pork wine in it or how about the stuff with the pimento cheese and then the jalapenos in it too what’s up I’m here live at the gr cruise I’ve been working out all week with my brother everyone thought I was working out for next season but obviously I was working out for this Cruise baby that’s why these pipes are gigantic right now oh look we got the life preserver there and here we are very good who are we grank or is that Bieber is that put yourr in the middle that that could be notice I’m practicing uh safety in the boat you didn’t look that happy life preserver and just in case it’s going to be all right here’s what I’ll get we can do that that nonsense yeah but you put a producer out here with Jose L tuvy and he gets all bent out of shape right to roughly the same height uh grank is retired greatest living American Tom Brady retired Bill checks out I don’t even know if the Patriots have a franchise anymore they might be moving to Jacksonville after the Jags go to London and admit it you missed the show even on Friday and even when it’s 70 degrees in the studio sometimes it’s not easy to find good talent for Sports Center John Anderson is at extension 5634 stink John five minutes what are you doing I thought it’s a myth a son you want to be on camera got to be ready to play the game I just love the oh my ankle over here in the digital Center is our highlight screening area so that’s where we get all the games questions or anything I can answer whatever you want Bon J’s released a new CD Crush [Applause] [Music] hey aren’t you the guys from Bristol John Tim Reigns ran he ran all night and day have a g the size of this beauty I got don’t that key gets you into every hey there he is the machine what are you talking about that’s what they call you right machine not a machine morning John Ricky man I’ve been sleepy lately how come the decaf then this isn’t decaf dude are you color blind no we’re going to need that highlight when it’s ready then we go well but you missed two shows already when it’s ready John Anderson’s just don’t grow on trees you got to go out and find them ah yes the rain delay those were good ones it was a that was great all and it was a rain delay it only took like four hours to shoot those took few minutes when they went through but they come up come out great don’t they it’s Fant like it’s I don’t know if you it’s like once you do one people feel like you actually have a career like until then they think you just have been shamming Chris burman’s car doing the wheel well make sure it’s clean you do Sports and commerci like oh you actually work there and back in the day anchors were jumping over themselves to get in guys were on vacation they were running into the building to try to be in these this is sports cops hey look uh so many people wanted to reach out and express how they feel about you and uh was weird being in the leevy lounge alone for a while there uh here’s the coach boy what retirement’s all about you got a dog right behind me here you can fly he’s the most beautiful dog in the world one of the smartest animals I’ve ever seen you’ve got friends getting together to have a cold beer maybe a cigar maybe you know something else that jumped up in front of us because when you retired you can do whatever you want go wherever you want talk to whoever we want and you know what else I don’t have to work with Levy anymore he’s retired too pretty soon so thoughts from bar he loves you so much too buddy yeah that’s great it’s good to see bear hope he’s you know working hard staying healthy doing his best yep doing his best what is this I thought you were out of the country you lying Dog Fitness Beach will not be seen at its normal time um we got a few things to say now I know kogan said you didn’t want to make it about you you’re a humble guy unlike my final show um so well let’s just make it about me uh my movie whiffle ball is coming out real soon I know you’re Mark s I can fill some NHL draft stuff we had some medicine hat guys Lethbridge Moosejaw I’m sure they got up there high I got the M’s walkoff do you want me to play it do we have MLB are we we’re good with them um no I I really came on to tell you how great just like Barry love Barry what retirement is all about you just got to go to the portal there’s some you know you got to get a computer helper bonds will help you um but I’ve been to bombs like nine times since I left and and we have pictures to prove it we’re down here again with the girls um you’re going to play more golf you might get new clubs you’re you’re just going to be the best of what you are and and and I think you’re going to have a great retirement even though you’re going to go work right away over at the Olympics you’re not even retired no this a f I’m a terrible reti come on down John you’re off in in in a couple minutes right I I am and I I I feel bad because like um maybe I committed to this whole I’m going to go uh teach at the University of Missouri too soon I need to go visit Barry and Kenny and so maybe they can push it off till 26 instead of January 25 so well they had me scheduled and then they kept pushing me I thought we’re going up on ESPN news alternate channel the Guam or something but can I say one sincere thing probably not no I can’t we did so many fun shows ly as well um just those late nights doing the Sundays the fake breaks till Sunday Night Football got over inside material um but you were just always such a great writer so fun to work with sometimes you got mad and when people brought too many script pages and you’d be cried the fact that we’re wasting trees um but other than that and we had some fun in our in our mutual bond about Green Bay you’re from there and that was my first team I love so love you loved working with you and and wish you uh all the success and whatever you choose next uh very good thank you Kenny and I apologize that um we took the pilots wait wait wait do we have time for your Packers at because remember would R A Packers us and they’d never run it can we just hot roll that right now just get that thing into R have you have you made your crypto money back that Aaron put you in I can’t I don’t know my password anymore I I have to my password we have time for three stars the night um what else we got anything else we do you leavey be in reverse order that’s us how it John Neil Everett congratulations on your Sports Center Career so you know the saying never meet your Heroes luckily I I still don’t what happens when you meet your Heroes but you are someone who I have admired and respected for the longest time man we’re going to miss you we’ve both done a lot of shows with you this is not goodbye this is just an appreciation for the great guy that John Anderson is one of my oldest and I don’t mean in age friends at ESPN when it comes to Sports Center hey man you were as good as anybody ever period working with you and now being able to call you a friend has been just an absolute Joy John is the best wrer I have ever been around as quick a wit as anyone that I have ever known maybe the best writer ever on Sports Center wow I had the uh great Fortune of anchoring with John Anderson on his first sports C get out of here about that how was that way back when Wow way back was it black and white keep that picture of us up on the wall in Bristol that should never leave the wall Johnny you have had an unbelievable run here at ESPN it was a blast doing shows with you it was even more fun getting to know you and your family we’re going to miss you but the folks in missou are going to benefit from all that you know I mean what a win to that what a win for the students at Missouri yeah they’re going to let you do that really you know how they have an Andy Reid uh coaching tree there’s going to be a John Anderson anchor tree take it easy on the kids with that grading now I love you and I’ll see you at the New York Marathon we both say good luck and all the best you are the real icon and I’m going to miss you so very much appreciate you brother godspeed and if you don’t think there’s life after Sports Center you’re wrong bartender one from my friend John Anderson and then uh and then Twitter took over as well X as you can see from uh all parts good I yeah I don’t I don’t have the Twitter I’m I think I’m going to get on Twitter now think now now that it’s I think it’s safe to get in the pool now what do you think so look I’ve been asking you all night yeah what’s it been like from the time you left your house you pull in the parking lot and so what’s going through your mind now is we’re 90 seconds away putting a bow this thing so I was really busy because people have been really kind in emailing and texting so I’m almost didn’t get the show done because I’ve I’ve been doing that um and I’m just I am really grateful um and you could name a billion people that have been great here actually more like thousands uh but if Al jaffy doesn’t hire me like so many of us it none of it happens so um like we’ll go with the Al jaffy and then everybody in the wake of that um I am grateful for and thankful for and um I really kept telling people I just like to do this as a regular show and just quietly slip into the night how’s that working out I think we’ve accomplished that I think this was classically understated the entire time and I could just walk away uh but I’m indebted to a bunch of people and I’ve always said Linda con helped make my career here because she’s the first person I sat next to and she was a maid guy right but when I took off so I had kind instant credibility and then when I got to work with you it went even more because I was next to Steve Levy and everybody knows Steve TV Levy and I benefited uh greatly from being next to you so many times and we did we had so many great times except for the one night we were here when there was a 22 inning game in San Diego but I don’t have to worry about that anymore cuz Zubin will be doing all of my shows come here buddy thank you friend I love you pal it was an honor to share the Des best SE in the house for 25 years thank you you’re the best you bet [Music]