Fans Pay Tribute to 'Sports Science' Founder John Brenkus After His Death

Andy Nesbitt | Jun 2, 2025

Television personality John Brenkus arrives for the 2018 ESPYS at Microsoft Theatre. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

John Brenkus, the founder of the Emmy-winning show Sports Science, died Saturday at the age of 54. A release on his social media accounts stated he lost his battle with depression.

Brenkus's Sports Science began on Fox Sports and was later aired on ESPN. In the segments he would dive into the science of what was actually happening on big plays and taught fans a lot about really cool stuff that went into those moments.

Here is the statement about his death:

“It is with profound sadness that we share the news that John Brenkus has passed away.

John, co-founder of Base Productions, Founder of Brinx.TV, and co-creator and host of the six-time Emmy award-winning ‘Sport Science,’ had been battling depression.

John lost his fight with this terrible illness on May 31, 2025. His heartbroken family and friends request privacy at this time, and encourage anyone who is struggling with depression to seek help."

ESPN aired this report Sunday night:

John Brenkus, the co-creator and host of ESPN's Sports Science, has died at the age of 54, Brinx TV announced in a statement Sunday. pic.twitter.com/n0OSXYKDUZ

— ESPN (@espn) June 2, 2025

Fans paid tributes to Brenkus:

Last April I had the privilege of going to an event at John Brenkus house in Georgia

Not only did I meet him but I was able to meet so many awesome people there. One of them being his mom who I talked to for 15 minutes on the couch. She told me how much John works, cares about… pic.twitter.com/X2C96HwGFO

— Bryce DeGroat (@NFL_Convo) June 2, 2025

RIP John Brenkus

His Sports Science segment on Dirk included an unforgettable line

“If you were as tall as Yao Ming, with the vertical leap of Derrick Rose… you still couldn’t get a hand on the ball.” https://t.co/BsOVYmFjot pic.twitter.com/9nmFgMr062

— Mavs Film Room 🐴🎥 (@MavsFilmRoom) June 2, 2025

Prayers up for John Brenkus and his family 🙏🏾
The man who gave us the Emmy Winning Sports Science lost his battle with depression at the age of 53. pic.twitter.com/QSxjh0U4ub

— Robert Griffin III (@RGIII) June 2, 2025

I was hooked watching this series RIP John Brenkus https://t.co/82nqbyHVmj pic.twitter.com/hXZRwEunR0

— ᴅᴏxx ⚡️ (@new_era72) June 2, 2025

Wow, sports science was one of my favorites. Rip. https://t.co/KQ0H5WXLud

— Devin Bradshaw (@DevinBradshaw_) June 2, 2025

RIP to an absolute legend 🙏🏽😭 https://t.co/iQOO0kLniC

— Tyler🦋 (@prodbyty__) June 2, 2025

I always enjoyed hearing him break down athletes in the different sports & comparisons. 🙏🏾 RIP n prayers for his family. https://t.co/1RkFiqWDTK

— Emmanuel M Mallam (@Coach_Mallam) June 2, 2025

---

More on Sports Illustrated

feed