“Don’t play with me!” Shannon Sharpe lashes out at Kirk Herbstreit for unnecessary criticism of First Take
Shannon Sharpe lashed out on Kirk Herbstreit after he shaded First Take during the Ohio State vs. Tennessee college football playoff game.
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Kirk Herbstreit and Shannon Sharpe (Via Athlon Sports/OutKick)
It appears sports analyst Shannon Sharpe isn’t ready to hear criticism about his expert analysis- that’s why he didn’t hold back from calling out Kirk Herbstreit after he shaded First Take during the Ohio State vs. Tennessee College Football Playoff game.
This season, Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day has been subjected to immense scrutiny with fans even demanding him to be fired. However, fans aren’t the only ones discussing the possibility as ESPN’s First Take hosted by Stephen A. Smith and Sharpe also did a deep dive on Day’s future in Ohio State– which didn’t sit well with Herbstreit.
First Take tried to fire him. They thought he was done, so I’ll be excited to see what they talk about on Monday after this performance. They had him out, trying to find replacements. But here he is, he still has his hat on. He’s still coaching.
Herbstreit said, calling out his colleagues live on the air.
In defense of Ryan Day, Kirk Herbstreit took aim at:
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) December 22, 2024
– The "lunatic fringe" at Ohio State. "The lunatic fringe at Ohio State is as powerful as anywhere in the country."
– First Take: "They thought he was done. So I'll be excited to see what they talk about on Monday." pic.twitter.com/0Ovs0MBMOd
Since taking over the head coach’s position, Day has an impressive 66-10 record but his humiliating 1-4 record against the team’s arch-rivals, Michigan Wolverines made him sit on the hot seat that the former Buckeyes quarterback resented before standing up for Day.
Shannon Sharpe claps back at Kirk Herbstreit’s criticism of “First Take”
While it remains debatable whether the college sports commentator invited the controversy, his ESPN colleagues were ready on Monday’s episode of First Take to strike back at Herbstreit. While Smith kept the response rather civil, Sharpe went volatile by seemingly sending a vague threat.
If we’re going to be on the same team, if we’re gonna work for the same network, don’t do that. Kirk, Chris Fowler, I promise you, if you ever mention any platform that I’m on again talking about ‘I wonder what they’re going to say as negativity,’ I promise you, ESPN ain’t got enough bosses to keep me off y’all for what I’m going to say… don’t play with me.
Sharpe asserted.
Shannon Sharpe on Kirk Herbstreit's criticism of First Take: "If we're going to be on the same team, if we're gonna work for the same network, don't do that. Kirk, Chris Fowler, I promise you, if you ever mention any platform that I'm on again talking about 'I wonder what they're… pic.twitter.com/4IPLUU5rYy
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) December 23, 2024
With his blunt words, Sharpe portrays that he isn’t letting his words be misinterpreted by anyone, even his colleague on the same network. While it was rare to see such drama between two prominent analysts of the network, the First Take show thrives on such controversial exchanges. All eyes are on Herbstreit to see how far he is willing to escalate the apparent conflict.
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Pratyusha Srivastava
(2162 Articles Published)