The sports journalism and sports world as a whole lost a highly-renowned author and columnist today, as John Feinstein has passed away at 68.
Highly Acclaimed Sportswriter John Feinstein Has Passed Away
Feinstein, author of 45 books spanning across college basketball, college football, golf, baseball, tennis, and the NFL, has passed away, his brother confirmed to The Washington Post on Thursday.
He became well known following the publishing of A Season On the Brink, a book chronicling Indiana head coach Bob Knight and the 1985-86 season with the Hoosiers. Feinstein detailed his total access to the Indiana program, a groundbreaking book that spent 17 weeks atop the New York Times best-selling list. It was later made into a film in 2002.
Feinstein began his career as a night police reporter and columnist with the Washington Post.
He soon became one of the most well-known journalists in all of sports, covering many high-profile sporting events such as the Final Four and the Olympics.
Along with “A Season On the Brink,” Feinstein also wrote “A Civil War: Army Vs. Navy a Year Inside College Football’s Purest Rivalry,” “The Back Roads to March: The Unsung, Unheralded,” and “Unknown Heroes of a College Basketball Season, and Five Banners: Inside the Duke Basketball Dynasty.”
He didn’t stick to just reporting about sports on the field of play. Feinstein wrote “Raise a Fist, Take a Knee: Race and the Illusion of Progress in Modern Sports,” which deeply examined the racial inequalities that occur in sports — making Feinstein a true advocate for all athletes.
Upon the news, his peers reflected on their friendship and the suddenness of his passing.
I kept hoping this wasn’t true. but legendary sportswriter and one of my closest friends John Feinstein has died suddenly. distinguished career at Washington Post, 45 books including Season on the Brink, A Good Walk Spoiled and my favorite children’s book of all time, Last Shot.…
— Dick Weiss (@HoopsWeiss) March 13, 2025
“I kept hoping this wasn’t true. but legendary sportswriter and one of my closest friends John Feinstein has died suddenly,” Dick “Hoops” Weiss wrote in a post on X.
“distinguished career at Washington Post, 45 books including Season on the Brink, A Good Walk Spoiled and my favorite children’s book of all time, Last Shot. best I ever read. I’m still in shock. just spoke with him. he was supposed to stay with us Sunday night before speaking at the Coaches v Cancer breakfast at the Palestra.”
Fellow sportswriter J.A. Adande shared a simple message on social media, noting Feinstein’s mentorship:
“Simply knowing John Feinstein made me a better college basketball reporter. That’s how good he was.”
Feinstein is a member of the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Hall of Fame. He was also awarded the Curt Gowdy Media Award in 2013, presented by the Basketball Hall of Fame.
Feinstein’s final piece of writing was published on Thursday morning in The Washington Post, a column detailing Tom Izzo’s success late in his coaching career. Hours later, Feinstein, undoubtedly one of the greatest, most transcendent sportswriters of all time, had passed away.
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