Molly Qerim hosted Monday’s episode of First Take.
Less than 24 hours later, she was no longer an ESPN employee.
Even as it has since emerged that the now-former First Take host had been engaged in contract negotiations with the Worldwide Leader, the expedited nature of her ESPN exit remained surprising nonetheless. During his eponymous SiriusXM radio show on Tuesday, Stephen A. Smith revealed that Qerim had abruptly resigned from the company, indicating that the departure was made on less than pleasant terms.
Speaking to The Athletic’s Richard Deitsch in a yet-to-be-released podcast episode, ESPN president of content Burke Magnus publicly addressed Qerim’s exit for the first time. And when it comes to the reason why she left the network before her contract expired at the end of this year, the ESPN executive pointed to the initial report from Sports Business Journal‘s Austin Karp, which first revealed the UConn alum’s impending departure.
“The one thing that was unexpected was the timing of all this,” Magnus told Deitsch. “She [Qerim] put out a statement because there was a report on it, so it kind of got out of our respective controls once that happened.”
While Karp’s report stated that Qerim would be leaving ESPN at the end of the year, a subsequent social media post from the longtime First Take host made it seem like the timeline would be more immediate. Apparently, at least one (and maybe both) of the parties decided that it was best to part ways now rather than spending the next three months with uncertainty surrounding the show and its host.
Even if Molly Qerim had stayed with ESPN, however, First Take would still be searching for a new host. According to Magnus, the two sides had already agreed to move her off the morning debate show to focus on new projects at the end of 2025.
“While we knew we were going to make a change — her deal ran through the end of the year — we were more focused on that timeline,” he said.
As for ESPN’s plan to find a replacement, the executive stated that the show would spend the next 30-45 days hosting on-air tryouts before settling on a new full-time host. Following Qerim’s abrupt exit, Smith has been hosting First Take since Tuesday.
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.