'Rock star' Stan Savran left indelible mark on co-workers, fans during iconic career

After diabetes stole some of his toes, Stan Savran’s co-workers at AT&T SportsNet would drive the iconic sportscaster two blocks down North Shore Drive and drop him off at the Bill Mazeroski statue outside PNC Park.

“He’d open the door, and it was like a rock star getting out,” said Bryan Anlauf, an AT&T SportsNet photographer since 1996. “Everybody was like, ‘Stan, love the show!’ He’d hit them with that classic line, ‘Oh, you’re the one.’ He’d have that briefcase and those mirrored sunglasses and it was like showtime. It was on.”

No one loved the show more than Savran, who died from lung cancer Monday at age 76. To say Savran was a sports legend in Pittsburgh is an understatement, as he was held in as high regard by his audience as the coaches and athletes he covered.

Among the Steelers greats Savran counted as friends were Hall of Famers Terry Bradshaw and Mike Webster — who drove in from Wisconsin every week to tape a segment, Under Center, at Three Rivers Stadium — and Steelers coach Mike Tomlin.

“On behalf of the Pittsburgh Steelers organization, I’d like to send a heartfelt condolence to the family of the late, great Stan Savran,” Tomlin said. “You guys know we had a long and prosperous past professional relationship with him. He was the absolute best. But beyond that on a personal note, I just really enjoyed that gentleman. The spirit, the energy, the awesome stories of Pittsburgh, just a legend, just really appreciated that as a guy that at one time was new to the city, man, I always appreciated his perspective on my circumstance, being able to share a story from the past and educate me a little bit.”

Savran’s graciousness toward his co-workers is legendary, as he was always first to ask about their families and send well wishes. That he became known as a true Pittsburgher, even though he was born and raised in Cleveland — was something Savran viewed as the highest form of a compliment.

The one exception to Savran’s temperament came when he was watching his beloved Cleveland Indians in the playoffs. AT&T editor Brian Lacek remembers watching the 1997 World Series with Savran, a former Indians bat boy, one afternoon at the station.

“He’d watch the anthem, would be sitting there and the pitcher would throw ball one and he’d bellow out an expletive. That’s how intense he was,” Lacek said. “You’d be like, ‘I hope there’s not a ball two.’ You’d sit back and wait for the explosion.”

Savran became known for his sharp wit and sharper tongue while hosting sports talk shows on a handful of radio stations and was an anchor on WTAE-TV. He rose to prominence in the early 1990s alongside Guy Junker as the co-hosts of “SportsBeat,” which became the longest-running sports show in Pittsburgh television history.

They worked without scripts or a teleprompter, building the framework of their show at meetings. Savran scribbled notes on a small, yellow legal pad and treated “SportsBeat” as a daily discussion but delivered his commentary with eloquence even as he ad-libbed his lines.

“There’s very few people that can do that,” said Richard Sutphen, a former “SportsBeat” producer. “In fact, I can’t think of anybody today who can do that.”

Where “SportsBeat’s” “love the show” line became a signature of the Pittsburgh sports scene, the popularity of Stan and Guy made them perfect for promotional porch tours at the homes of sports fans all around the city’s neighborhoods in the summers.

“He loved doing those porch tours,” Anlauf said. “We’d have a satellite truck, and they would roll into someone’s home with a bunch of hoagies and cases of beer and the boys would do the show on people’s porch. It became a big block party. In the last segment, the homeowners would join in. It was awesome. They’d make you feel so welcome, and they were so juiced to have Stan and Guy at their house.”

Junker viewed Savran as a big brother. Junker reveled in being Savran’s sidekick, especially as they became best friends who shared special occasions together outside of the office.

“No question my career got bolstered by working with Stan — he was already a superstar — but he respected my opinion and knowledge,” Junker said. “I used to work for his acceptance. When he paid me a compliment, it meant everything.”

Savran’s passion for sports was matched only by his work ethic, which was unparalleled. Roger Lenhart, Savran’s longtime producer, was on his way to Detroit to cover the Penguins in the Stanley Cup Final when he received an unexpected call from Savran, who shared unbelievable news: Savran was going to miss a show. And Stan Savran never missed a show.

“He called me from the back of an ambulance. He was on his way to the hospital,” Lenhart said. “He was actually in tears. It wasn’t because of the pain. It was because he was going to miss shows. That typifies Stan. He never called off. He always said that place was his family.”

AT&T SportsNet was even planning a farewell show with Savran after he had his right leg amputated, which was a motivator for Savran before he succumbed to cancer. He took pride in working through his physical pain, returning soon after undergoing open-heart surgery, as well as surgeries on his back and brain over the years.

“His dedication was second to none,” Lacek said. “I always remember his speech at his Pirates Wall of Fame induction, when he said, ‘Even if you’re sick, you go to work and get the job done.’”

Added Anlauf: “He was a workhorse. He had head surgery and showed up with a scar on his forehead and it was still oozing. It was unbelievable. No matter how sick he was, he felt that dedication to the viewers, to the people. He felt that he owed them.”

Lacek, who handles audio, editing and producing at AT&T SportsNet, remembers listening to Savran debating sports on AM radio roundtables with Myron Cope, George VonBenko and Junker as a student at St. Pius X grade school in Brookline “never thinking that I would end up working with him” on the “SportsBeat” story of the day.

“I would tell him what was on each package and trust him to transition between them because I knew whatever he would say would be 10 times better than anything I would write,” Lacek said. “He would sit with me all the time while editing. A couple years passed, and he called me and said, ‘You’re my personal editor.’ I was like, ‘That’s so cool.’ I knew right away what an honor that was. I never forgot it. Years later, he had a poster on foamboard and signed it to me, ‘To Brian, my personal editor. Love, Stan.’ I don’t think there’s a better honor than that.”

Savran’s impact on the Pittsburgh sports scene — and especially at AT&T SportsNet — was so profound that his co-workers, past and present, visited his home even as he was in hospice care the past week to share tearful farewells and pay touching tributes to the man they loved.

“It’s the end of an era,” Sutphen said. “He was truly a pleasure to work with. He was easy to get along with, especially when doing a show. He had his opinions, which could be strong — and which made it fun. He was a pro, a true pro. He loved sports. That was his forte. That’s about all I can say about him without crying.”