Shannon Sharpe shed a few tears on Tuesday saying goodbye to Skip Bayless and Undisputed on FS1. The Pro Football Hall of Famer also expressed his extreme appreciation for Bayless taking a chance on him and believing he could be a star.
“I’m here because of you,” Sharpe said to Bayless. “You’ve allowed me to share the stage with you. You’ve allowed me to share the platform. You’ve helped me grow more than you ever know.”
Stephen A. Smith said on his podcast The Stephen A. Smith Show, that like Sharpe, he doesn’t reach the level of stardom at ESPN he’s currently at without Skip.
“And I can relate because I am sitting here right now with this podcast feeding off my success and what I’ve been fortunate and blessed enough to achieve at ESPN,” Stephen A. said on the new episode. “And knowing that it starts with Skip Bayless.”
Stephen A. went on to say that there’s no denying that he and Skip’s relationship had some rocky times, but they always hashed things out.
“We looked each other in the face, we had a conversation about it,” he said. “And he’ll stand right there and listen to me because we go back that long. And he knows that at the end of the day, I know what he’s done for me.”
Smith added that people might be surprised to know that Bayless actually helped more minority personalities thrive in the business than they think.
“There’s a whole bunch of brothers and sisters – Black people – that Skip Bayless has helped out and looked out for,” Stephen A. said. “And I know people try to question his intent. I’m highlighting his results.”
