Skip Bayless’ colleagues took to social media to honor the sports media personality’s abrupt exit from FS1 airwaves.
Bayless, who confirmed on X that Friday was his final show, is leaving the network after eight years on the air.
“A truly legendary run,” Nick Wright of “First Things First” (FTF) on FS1 wrote on X. “Very few people, in any industry, can say they helped create & define an entire genre. Skip did that. Salute & good luck in whatever he does moving forward.”
Wright’s FTF co-host, Chris Broussard, also had kind words for Bayless, whom he has worked with since both commentators were at ESPN in the mid-2000s.
“Skip Bayless has been my friend & colleague for nearly 2 decades,” Broussard wrote on X. “He helped get me to @FS1. While we disagreed on much, he’s undeniably a legend. I’ll miss him.”
Bayless carried on with his daily “Undisputed” show on Friday after Marcellus Wiley, who previously worked with Bayless at Fox, said on his podcast Thursday that it would be Bayless’ final episode before the announcement on social media.
“Today was my last show on Undisputed,” Bayless wrote Friday. “I’m leaving FS1. I’ve been planning to pursue other opportunities for several months. I had a great 8-year run with a lot of great people at FOX, but now I’m excited for what’s coming up. Stay tuned.”
The Post’s Ryan Glasspiegel first reported last month that Bayless’ Fox Sports days were numbered and that his last show would come this summer.
Bayless’ departure follows Shannon Sharpe, who left FS1 last summer for the Worldwide Leader, in what’s become the end of an era for the network.
In 2021, former Post columnist Andrew Marchand reported that Bayless signed a four-year deal with FS1 worth $32 million.