Broadcaster known as ‘Godfather’ of sports in Pittsburgh

PITTSBURGH — Stan Savran, who spent nearly five decades in sports broadcasting chronicling Pittsburgh’s rise to the “City of Champions,” has died. He was 76.

WTAE-TV, where Mr. Savran worked as a sports anchor in the 1980s, announced Mr. Savran’s death on Monday. No official cause of death was given but Mr. Savran, who was living in Upper St. Clair in the city’s southern suburbs, had been very public about his battle with lung cancer in recent years.

Affectionately known as the “Godfather” of Pittsburgh sports, the Cleveland native arrived in his adopted city in 1976 and never left. He began his career in Pittsburgh in radio before moving into TV while even occasionally moonlighting as a newspaper columnist.

Mr. Savran was best known for the nightly “SportsBeat” show he co-hosted on regional cable alongside Guy Junker. The show, which ran from 1991-2009, was required viewing for fans in a city avid about its professional sports teams. Callers would often start their conversation with “Stan, Guy, love the show,” a phrase Mr. Savran affectionately carried with him after the show’s long run ended.

“You will not find a better person, someone who has been so helpful to people like me and so many others, who asked for his time, he was always gracious to help young people in this business of ours,” longtime KDKA TV sports anchor Bob Pompeani said.

Mr. Savran combined a tireless work ethic and almost exhaustive knowledge of sports with an opinionated but straightforward delivery that made him one of the most trusted voices in a crowded media market.

Mr. Savran’s almost photographic memory allowed him to work without a teleprompter, a rarity.

“He was just an old-school guy,” producer Roger Lenhart told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “I was like, ‘How does he remember all of this with no ‘prompter?’”