ESPN’s Edward Aschoff dies at 34, weeks after pneumonia disclosure

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Edward Aschoff, a radio and television reporter on college football for ESPN, died Tuesday after a brief illness, according to the network. His death came on Christmas Eve, which was his 34th birthday.

In an Instagram post earlier this month, Aschoff disclosed he had recently caught pneumonia. The post was dated Dec. 4, just days after Aschoff worked the Michigan-Ohio State game for the network.

“Having pneumonia is pretty terrible. Like the absolute worst,” he wrote. “But it helps having this sweet angel taking care of you even when she’s risking getting this soul-crushing illness herself.”

Edward Aschoff, who died Tuesday, had been with ESPN since 2011, according to the network. (ESPN/Edward Aschoff Instagram)

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The post included a photo of Aschoff’s fiancée, Katy Berteau. The couple had planned to marry in April 2020, according to the network.

In another post, Aschcoff wrote: “Covering #TheGame was a lot of fun. Getting pneumonia … not so much. But, hey, I’m a hockey player.”

Word of Aschoff’s death devastated his ESPN colleagues and others who knew him, including sports figures, and many posted tributes and remembrances on social media.

Aschoff was a native of Oxford, Miss., and graduated from the University of Florida in 2008, according to ESPN. After working at The Gainsville Sun, where he covered the University of Florida Gators, he joined ESPN’s Atlanta office in 2011 to cover SEC football.

Starting in 2017, Aschoff was based in Los Angeles and began receiving more nationally focused assignments, the network reported, and was a contributor to the network’s website, its flagship “SportsCenter” television program and other broadcasts.

ESPN executive editor Lauren Reynolds called

Aschoff was called "one of the smartest, brightest reporters I've ever had the pleasure of working with,” by Lauren Reynolds, ESPN’s executive editor.

"Watching him grow from our co-SEC reporter with Chris Low to a multiplatform national reporter was a treat," Reynolds said, according to the network. "For as good of a reporter Ed was, he was an even better person. He always put people first -- those whose stories he told, and those who had the honor of working alongside him.

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"The outpouring of love and support from those whose lives he touched has been overwhelming, and is a testament to the light he brought to this world."

Aschoff's death was not the first tragedy to strike the network. For example, in 2015, "SportsCenter" anchor Stuart Scott died of cancer at age 49, and in 2016, John Saunders, who hosted "The Sports Reporters," died suddenly in his home at age 61, reportedly from natural causes.