The sports world experienced an unexpected loss this week when football analyst Kirk Herbstreit announced Thursday that his beloved dog Ben has passed away. Ben, known for escorting Herbstreit to college football and NFL games across the country, had been with Herbstreit’s family for a decade.

In a heartfelt post on social media, Herbstreit wrote that Ben, who was diagnosed with cancer in March, had died after the cancer spread to his organs.

Herbstreit had previously provided updates on Ben’s health prior to the dog’s death.

The golden retriever hit the road with Herbstreit in 2021, making his first appearance on ESPN’s “College GameDay” in November of that year. Ben was a common sight at the games Herbstreit attended as an ESPN college football analyst and as an NFL analyst for Amazon Prime Video’s “Thursday Night Football.” Ben was also known to interrupt some of those broadcasts and wag his tail at Herbstreit in the announce booth.

Ben was equally loved by the teams he visited, with several teams creating credentials specifically for the golden retriever. This season, Herbstreit shared that the Miami Dolphins had graduated Ben by designating him as the “Chief Happiness Officer of Football” and that the Atlanta Falcons had designated him as a “wide retriever.”

Herbstreit revealed last fall that Ben had become an official emotional support animal (ESA).

A few hours after his first post, Herbstreit posted again, expressing his appreciation for the people who contacted him about Ben.