Kirk Herbstreit (Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images)
Fans are praying for Kirk Herbstreit and his family following some heartbreaking personal news.

The ESPN broadcaster attracted rife criticism after Ohio State beat Notre Dame to win the National Championship on Monday night, especially because he could not hold the tears back during the postgame segment on SportsCenter.

He has since disclosed how hard the last year has been for him, revealing his wife Alison was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2024, compounding the loss of his dog Ben and his son Zak’s heart issues.

“I haven’t really talked about this publicly, but Ali my wife faced some stuff. It’s been a tough year for me behind the scenes,” Herbstreit said on ‘The Pat McAfee Show’. “My wife got diagnosed with breast cancer, Ben dies, it was just a lot of emotion. And when you do what we do, you endure.

“You do your job. And I think what happened, I couldn’t predict it, but when they won … it was like almost, I don’t know, maybe a release of all that pent-up stuff. And it just got the best of me. I’m an emotional guy in general and when things touch my heart, I’m not good at talking when that happens.”

The revelation has prompted an outpouring on social media, with many users showing support and offering prayers.

“May God hold you and yours in your time of need. I appreciate what you do,” a comment read.

“Prayers for Kirk and his family. Guy can’t catch a break this year,” a user wrote.

“I feel awful for Kirk man. Hoping things start looking up soon for him,” someone added.

“Praying for Kirk and his family 🙏,” someone else shared.

“🙏🙏 Kirk’s a real one. Prayers up,” a fan declared.

Kirk Herbstreit Has Strong Ties To Ohio State

Herbstreit was a quarterback at Ohio State in the early 1990s and still lives in nearby Tennessee. He is also good friends with Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day, and his son Zak is on the roster, so it’s sometimes hard to be objective.

Following their win on Monday night, he showed his emotions while on the aforementioned ESPN show with Scott Van Pelt.

That may have also been because his wife was in the booth then.

“It was almost a perfect storm for me,” Herstreit noted.

We at TPS would like to wish Kirk and his family all the best as they continue to endure a difficult period. They are in our thoughts.