After Ohio State defeated Notre Dame in the national championship game, Kirk Herbstreit was overcome with emotion. He later disclosed on Tuesday that he was thinking about more than just the game.
During an appearance on ESPN’s Pat McAfee’s show, the well-known commentator revealed that his wife, Alli, had been fighting cancer.
I haven’t really spoken this in public, but he said that my wife, Alli, had to deal with certain difficulties. Behind the scenes, it has been a difficult year for me.
He went on, “My wife was diagnosed with breast cancer.” Ben, my dog, passes away, you know. There was simply a great deal of feeling. And you persevere when you do what we do. You carry out your duties. Because of all they had to deal with and everything that went on behind the scenes, I was thrilled when the Buckeyes won, even though I couldn’t have predicted what had happened. It was almost—I don’t know—a release of all the things that had been building inside of me, and it just got to me.
In general, I’m an emotional person, so when anything affects me, I find it difficult to express myself.
Former Buckeyes quarterback Herbstreit’s son, Zak, played tight end for the school before retiring medically because of a heart problem. After his health problems, Herbstreit expressed his gratitude to Day for supporting Zak and continuing to be a part of the program.
Taking everything into account, it is simple to understand why he was experiencing intense emotions after the huge game.