Howie Schwab, a longtime ESPN producer and statistician known for his role on the network’s popular “Stump the Schwab” game show in the 2000s, passed away at the age of 63 on Saturday. The cause of his death has not been disclosed.
ESPN’s “SportsCenter” paid tribute to Schwab during their Saturday morning broadcast, and ESPN college basketball analyst Dick Vitale confirmed the news on social media, citing Schwab’s battle with various health issues.
Schwab joined ESPN in 1987 and spent most of his career working behind the scenes. In 2004, he became the star of “Stump the Schwab,” a sports trivia game show hosted by Stuart Scott. Contestants competed against each other with the ultimate challenge of defeating Schwab, who was renowned for his knowledge of sports from all eras. The show ran for four seasons and ended in 2006.
In addition to “Stump the Schwab,” Howie Schwab made appearances on the early days of “First Take,” where he ranked his anticipation of upcoming sporting events on a scale of 1 to 5 “Bags of Chips.” In 2013, ESPN decided to part ways with Schwab, leading him to join Fox Sports as a writer and consultant for “Sports Jeopardy!”
