ESPN and Jonathan Coachman Discuss Roddy Piper’s Death

As previously reported, “Rowdy” Roddy Piper, 61, passed away during his sleep on July 30 due to cardiac arrest in his Hollywood home. His death has been receiving a lot of mainstream media attention, including coverage by ESPN. Earlier today, ESPN and Jonathan Coachman discuss Roddy Piper’s death on “SportsCenter.”

Jonathan Coachman, former long time WWE employee and current ESPN “SportsCenter” anchor, weighed in on Piper’s death and his impact on the industry. He also discussed the type of worker Piper was, and how his persona sometimes overshadowed his in-ring abilities.

Coachman states,

“In professional wrestling, especially when you work for Vince McMahon, ‘respect’ is the number one word that we live by. Roddy Piper was respected as a person, and was sort of a trailblazer. If that first WrestleMania didn’t go the way that it did, the WWE probably wouldn’t be in existence today. That is how important of a role that he played. This was a guy who could get in the ring and work with anybody with any type of style. He could get work with Hulk Hogan, who was somewhat limited in the ring, to someone who was an athletic worker. He was extremely athletic. His ability to talk on the mic and his persona sometimes overshadowed just what type of worker he was.”

Coachman has been a member of the ESPN staff since 2009, and due to his 10 year tenure with WWE, has been asked to discuss many professional wrestling topics over the years. In 2015, he interviewed Brock Lesnar prior to WrestleMania 31 when The Beast Incarnate revealed that he had signed a new contract with WWE. He also talked about the passing of “The American Dream” Dusty Rhodes on ESPN at the time of his death in June.

You can view the full interview below.

Editor’s Note:

Roddy Piper’s death receiving this kind of mainstream media attention just goes to show how his character transcended the world of sports entertainment. His impact goes beyond the hardcore wrestling fan, and he will be missed on a global scale.