Tragedy has struck the Herbstreit household ... Kirk Herbstreit just revealed his famous dog, Ben Herbstreit, has died.
The renowned football commentator said on his X page Thursday morning that he and his family were forced to let their pooch go after vets said the cancer the dog had been battling had spread to his organs.
"I've had dogs my whole life," Kirk said in announcing the sad news, "but Ben was 1 on 1."
Kirk stated that Ben "was smart-loving-gentle-patient-inquisitive-and welcoming to all" -- and added that the two had developed their own way of communicating.