The 11 Most Ridiculous Skip Bayless Moments

Skip Bayless, the polarizing sports media personality, has had more than his fair share of ridiculous moments as a co-host of ESPN's "First Take."

Not Available Lead
Complex Original

Image via Complex Original

Not Available Lead

A teary-eyed Skip Bayless emotionally said goodbye to ESPN and First Take in June, giving fellow troll Stephen A. Smith one last hug before he walked away from “The Worldwide Leader in Sports” and into the arms of Fox Sports.

With a new sidekick in NFL Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe, Bayless will debut his new show on FS1, Skip and Shannon Undisputed—opposite First Take—Tuesday morning and unleash his polarizing hot takes on a new network.  

The 64-year-old’s time at ESPN will best be remembered for his hottest of the hot takes on his favorite players—including Tim Tebow, Vince Young and Robert Griffin III—and his equally disdainful hot takes on guys like LeBron James and Terrell Owens. But the lure of Los Angeles and the prospects of making $5.5 million a year were too great for him to say no to joining the competition. So before Bayless debuts on FS1 at 10 a.m. ET, let’s look back at some of his most ridiculous moments during his long run at ESPN, featuring enough hot takes to heat a house in the Arctic all winter long. Caution, contents might be flammable.

Richard Sherman tells Bayless “You have never accomplished anything.”

Not Available Interstitial

About a year before his infamous interview with Erin Andrews, Sherman was first making his name as a trash-talker thanks to his Twitter beef with Darrelle Revis.

A few weeks after the feud, Sherman appeared on First Take to discuss it. Bayless seemed to take Revis’ side, which prompted Sherman to tell Bayless that he’s “never accomplished anything” and that he’s “better at life” than him.

This remains the most-watched YouTube clip in First Take’s history, with over 4 million views.

Bayless explains why he doesn’t hate Allen Iverson.

Not Available Interstitial

Michelle Beadle leaves Bayless speechless over Tim Tebow.

Not Available Interstitial

It’s no secret that Skip Bayless loves Tim Tebow. So much to the point that he appears to take criticisms of the ex-QB personally.

After Michelle Beadle compared Tim Tebow to the Kardashians, Bayless’ jaw literally dropped. This was a classic moment of Bayless’ theatrics that made him and First Take one of the biggest shows on ESPN.

Bayless rips Dwight Howard to his face.

Not Available Interstitial

A common criticism of Dwight Howard is that he is very thin-skinned. At least that’s what Charles Barkley seemed to think when he grilled him for 15 minutes on TNT this year.

So perhaps appearing on First Take wasn’t such a smart move for Howard. Bayless ripped Howard, saying that “He looks like Tarzan and sometimes plays like Jane.” There probably aren’t too many Lakers fans who would disagree with Bayless there.

Bayless and Lil Wayne. At the same table. Yes, this actually happened.

Not Available Interstitial

It’s hard to imagine two more opposite people than Dwayne Michael Carter, Jr. and Bayless. Weezy was the most popular rapper in the world at this time, while Bayless was middle-age sportscaster. Lil Wayne has face tattoos, while Bayless...doesn’t.

Wayne has actually been a semi-regular guest on First Take over the years, debated Bayless several times. In this clip, they debated a certain Florida quarterback Bayless always had a thing for.

Kevin Hart roasts Skip and Stephen A. Smith for “Not knowing anything about sports.”

Not Available Interstitial

Hart’s roasting skills are well documented. He served as roastmaster for Comedy Central’s 2015 roast of Justin Bieber, which was the third-most watched roast in the channel’s history.

Two years prior to this, Hart was able to tune up his roasting skills as a guest on First Take. He joined the debate desk for a full 12 minutes. Most guests will typically debate the sports topics of the day, but Hart instead channeled his focus towards Bayless and Smith, who he ripped apart for a full 12 minutes.

“You people disgust me. You people know nothing about sports. I sit in my bed and watch you talk about nothing every morning,” Hart said (jokingly, we think).

Bayless acts like a rap expert but can’t name five rappers.

Not Available Interstitial

Bayless’ takes on sports have made him rich. But his takes on hip hop are a bit more forgettable.

After Bayless called out his co-host for not knowing anything about rap, he challenged him to name five rappers. He named Eminem, 50 Cent, Dr. Dre, and the Wu-Tang Clan. That’s it. He couldn’t name a fifth. Lame.

When he legendarily tweeted “RG3 is better than Luck.”

Not Available Interstitial

Bayless has been known to shake up the Twitter game from time to time. This tweet stands as possibly his most infamous.

Bayless’ proclamation that Griffin would be a better quarterback than Luck always seems to make its way onto the timeline. Whenever Luck has a big game, it’s there. Whenever Griffin is in the news for something negative, it’s there. Whenever someone wants to troll Bayless, it’s there.

Jalen Rose calls out Bayless’ high school basketball career.

Not Available Interstitial

Bayless talked up his high school basketball career for years. He even likened himself to Pete Maravich on Twitter. All of this, however, was a lie—and it was exposed on live TV by none other than Jalen Rose in 2013.

In a heated debate with Bayless on Russell Westbrook, Rose revealed to the world that Bayless averaged 1.4 points per game in high school and played JV as a junior. Rose gave Bayless the diss of a lifetime when he called him “Water Pistol Pete Junior.”

Mark Cuban rips Skip (and Stephen A.) apart.

Not Available Interstitial

When Mark Cuban tweeted that his 2-year-old knew more about sports than Bayless, Bayless invited the billionaire Mavs owner on the show to debate him. Cuban took him up on the offer, and ripped Bayless and the media for 18 minutes.

Larry Johnson challenges Bayless to a fight.

Not Available Interstitial

Remember Larry Johnson? He rushed for over 1,700 yards in back-to-back seasons with the Chiefs before he fell off the face of the earth.

Well, when he appeared on 1st & 10 circa 2006, he (lightheartedly) asked Bayless to step outside. This may have been a little bit funnier had Johnson not been arrested numerous times for assault.

Latest in Sports