Longtime sportscaster Ed Ingles dies at age 87

NEW YORK (AP) — Ed Ingles, who helped pioneer sports updates on radio during a 60-year broadcasting career, died Friday. He was 87.

His death was confirmed by Hofstra University’s radio station WRUHU, where Ingles most recently was the professional in residence.

Ingles was a former New York sports director for WCBS. He also was an analyst on NFL and college basketball games, and covered golf, tennis, horse racing, auto racing and several Olympics.

Considered a strong reporter and dynamic story teller, Ingles spent 24 years at WCBS, often as the morning sports anchor.

“Ed didn’t just give the information, he told amazing stories, made relationships with the people he was talking to, and it came through on every report,” WCBS anchorman Wayne Cabot said.

Ingles trained many future sportscasters there and expanded his teachings at Hofstra, sending dozens of broadcasters, producers, directors and engineers into the broadcasting field. That included his son, Kevin, who became a producer at ESPN, and his daughter, Diana, an associate director at CBS.

“From a personal standpoint, it’s a great way to keep young,” Ingles once said of his role at the school. “You don’t want to be in some gated community or nursing home with old people talking about their ailments. You want to hang out with young people who have energy and who are also very smart. The thing we don’t always realize is how much we learn from young people, and that’s what keeps me going.”

A University of Georgia journalism graduate, Ingles was honored by that school with its Lifetime Achievement Award for Journalism and Teaching. He also was a member of the St. John’s University Hall of Fame.

His true legacy is with the students he taught, encouraged and helped spur their careers.

“Though Ed had two children already, he treated every student that came through WRHU as if they were his own,” said Evan Wilner, now a lead producer at ESPN Radio. “No matter what their talent level, experience or aspirations were, he provided the guidance necessary to become the next Walter Cronkite or Al Michaels.”

Ingles is survived by his wife, Margaret, and a daughter, Diana.