Skip Bayless made his debut on FS1’s revamped Undisputed on Monday morning, and ESPN noticed the show’s new format.
On ESPN’s First Take, Ryan Clark playfully criticized Stephen A. Smith for stating the obvious while trying to provide a logical answer to a topic intended to incite debate about the NFL’s best QB-WR duos.
Clark sarcastically remarked that ESPN couldn’t make any First Take decisions without Smith.
However, after teasing Smith about his influence at ESPN, Clark ultimately complimented the First Take host, while subtly taking a jab at Skip Bayless.
“This is what we do know,” Clark said. “As Stephen A. is doing things, pulling from other shows, other shows are also taking pages out of Stephen A.’s book. But we’re not gonna talk about that today. Maybe that’s a topic for a podcast conversation.”
Still trying to figure out who Ryan Clark is referring to at the end of this clip pic.twitter.com/YpcD5v8sp3
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) August 28, 2023
Which other shows are trying to emulate Stephen A.’s success? Those shows are Skip Bayless’ Undisputed.
Two years ago, Stephen A. Smith decided to revamp First Take by removing Max Kellerman and making himself the focal point of the show, engaging in debates with a rotating cast of people. Likewise, Bayless and Shannon Sharpe engaged in debates for almost seven years on FS1’s Undisputed.
However, now Undisputed has been relaunched as a carbon copy of First Take, much to the displeasure of some insiders at Fox, according to Front Office Sports.
When Sharpe left Undisputed in June, Bayless decided to recruit a new cast of analysts, including Keyshawn Johnson, Michael Irvin, and Richard Sherman, similar to how Stephen A. revamped First Take.
The difference is that First Take remains unequivocally Stephen A.’s show, whereas in the debut episode of the new Undisputed, Bayless seemingly passed the reins over to the new contributors.
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