'Late Night' host Seth Meyers: Jamie Samuelsen was a delight, 'nothing less'

Editor's note: The host of "Late Night with Seth Meyers" on NBC, was a friend of Jamie Samuelsen's, dating to their days together as students at Northwestern in the early 1990s. Samuelsen, a long-time fixture in the Detroit sports media scene, died Saturday from colon cancer at the age of 48. Meyers, when contacted by The Detroit News, wanted to share his memories of Samuelsen.

I met Jamie in college. He was a senior and I was a freshman. In a time when I was desperate to have something in common with anyone, Jamie was an oasis who would talk to me about baseball. He was the embodiment of what I love most about sports. The human connection it provides between people who would otherwise be strangers. I always found it fitting that he ended up doing that for a living. I imagine plenty of people who never met him felt like they know him just by having the good fortune to hear him on the radio.

I'll always remember that when everyone we were hanging out with felt like kids, Jamie felt like an adult. He was still fun to be around, but he seemed to appreciate the importance of decency, patience and empathy a lot sooner than the rest of us did. If he was ever in a foul mood or having a bad day, you wouldn't know it. I can't remember the last time I saw him. Maybe when he came to a taping of 'Late Night' or the 2018 Big Ten Championship game that Ohio State rudely won. I think one of the reasons I can't remember the last time is because he was the most consistent person I ever met. It was always a delight to see him. Nothing less.

I will really miss him.

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