Jason Kelce was emotional during an ESPN segment honoring Ryan Quigley, whose best friend, Tiger Bech, was killed in a terrorist attack. Credit: ESPN
By Sam Neumann on

Super Bowl Sunday figures to be an emotional day for Jason Kelce.

The now-retired Philadelphia Eagles All-Pro center will be between a rock and a hard place during Super Bowl LIX. Kelce is bound to his former team and many former teammates, who are like family on the Philadelphia side. And then there’s his brother, Travis, who, of course, stars for the Kansas City Chiefs.

But Jason was part of ESPN’s pregame coverage on Sunday NFL Countdown before game time. The Monday Night Countdown personality lent his services to the Sunday desk and was overcome with a lot of emotion — and it had nothing and everything to do with Sunday’s game.

The New Year’s Eve terrorist attack that claimed the lives of 15 and injured 30 more hit close to home. Among those killed was Tiger Bech, a former Princeton University football player. Bech is survived by his family and his best friend, Ryan Quigley, who also played football at the Ivy League institution.

Quigley was there in New Orleans that fateful night, and he broke bones in his leg, back and face. As he grapples with the tragic loss of his best friend, having survived the attack himself, the Philadelphia community — particularly the Eagles — has attempted to rally around Quigley.

While he vowed never to return to New Orleans, he also made a promise to Bech. Quigley, a die-hard Eagles fan who converted his best friend and Louisiana native into a full-fledged Birds fan, promised they’d go to the Super Bowl if Philadelphia won the NFC.

Tragedy struck, but the Eagles have since lifted up one of their own.

Quigley will be at the Super Bowl this Sunday, having been around the team facility and meeting current and former players, like Kelce and Brandon Graham, among several others.

After the segment featuring Quigley played on ESPN’s airwaves Sunday morning, Kelce was beside himself. It was a powerful piece, touching, yet so emotional for Kelce and Rex Ryan, who each fought back tears while living on the Worldwide Leader’s airwaves.

As Kelce finally was able to muster out the words, he delivered a poignant message.

“Listen, there’s some awful people in this world,” he shared. “And I had the fortune to meet Ryan and the spirit right there; you wouldn’t even know something happened if he wasn’t in a wheelchair before the Rams game. And I’m so — on one end, something terrible can happen; on the other end, something so beautiful can happen. Just happy he’s going to be here on behalf of Eagles fans everywhere. Hell yeah, Ryan.”

About Sam Neumann

Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.

View all posts by Sam Neumann