Scott Van Pelt


Scott Van Pelt is an American sportscaster and sports talk show host. He co-anchored the 11 p.m. edition of SportsCenter on ESPN, served as the co-host of SVP & Russillo alongside Ryen Russillo on ESPN Radio, and hosts various golf events for the network. In June 2015, Van Pelt left his radio show to become a solo anchor for a midnight edition of SportsCenter.

Early life

Scott Van Pelt was born in Brookeville, Maryland, and grew up in the Washington, D.C., area. He attended Flower Valley Elementary School in Rockville, Maryland. He graduated from Sherwood High School in Sandy Spring, Maryland, and from the University of Maryland in 1988 where he studied radio/television and film. He is a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity.

Career

Scott Van Pelt began his career in sportscasting at WTTG-TV, a FOX affiliate in Washington, D.C. in 1990 and then moved on to the Golf Channel, where he worked from 1995 to 2000 as a studio host for some of the network's signature programs. He left the channel in 2001 to join ESPN, where he serves as a presenter for SportsCenter and is one of the network's top golf correspondents, covering major tournaments such as the Masters Tournament. After acquiring the cable rights to the tournament, Van Pelt also appeared on ESPN's coverage of The Open Championship. He also is a prominent personality for ESPN Radio, where he was the co-host of Tirico and Van Pelt alongside Mike Tirico before the program was canceled and replaced with Van Pelt's own three-hour program, The Scott Van Pelt Show, in 2009. The show was renamed SVP & Russillo in October 2012. He is a studio presenter for the ESPN Network's Friday night College Football on ESPN.
Van Pelt has also appeared as a commentator in golf video games, alongside Kelly Tilghman on EA Sports' Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 and Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11 and in a comedic turn in Aqua Teen Hunger Force Zombie Ninja Pro-Am.
In 2012, Van Pelt made the decision to stay with ESPN. In May 2015, the network announced Van Pelt would leave the radio show SVP & Russillo to become a solo anchor for a midnight-edition of SportsCenter, which began in late summer 2015. The midnight show covers sports events from the day, but includes additional commentary from Van Pelt and some popular elements from the radio show.

Personal life

Van Pelt's family includes his parents, Cathie Mathis and Sam, as well as his grandfather, Lorenzo, who immigrated to the US from Italy and lived in Brooklyn.
Van Pelt married Stephanie in 2011 and he has two children. His daughter Lila Catherine was born in 2012 and his son Sam was born in 2016.
Having grown up in Maryland and graduated from College Park, Van Pelt is a fan of the Maryland Terrapins, Washington Redskins, Washington Capitals, Baltimore Orioles, and the Washington Wizards.