ESPN’s First Take continued its recent trend of show members debating each other’s outfits and appearance Wednesday, with guest Chris “Mad Dog” Russo earning the mock wrath of host Molly Qerim.
Qerim started off with a jab at Stephen A. Smith for his outfit, which featured a polka-dot shirt.
Smith poked back at Qerim, noting, “You’ve had better days.” When Qerim seemed a bit surprised, Smith responded with a couple of compliments.
“I like the hairdo, I like the black-and-white (outfit), the little matrix look, that kind of stuff, it’s all right,” Smith said.
“It’s actually brown,” Qerim corrected.
Russo then checked into the discussion.
“I think ordinary today,” Russo said to Qerim. “I don’t see anything special.”
“Me?” Qerim asked incredulously.
“A little ordinary,” Russo confirmed.
“I don’t know what’s going on with the vitriol,” Qerim said. “What did you just say? I look ordinary… ordinary.”
Smith swooped in with the save.
“She never looks bad,” he said. “Her ordinary is most folks’ exceptional.”
Molly Qerim: "Stephen A., I have just one question. I like the color of the suit, very nice. But is there a statute of limitations on how many patterns one can have?"
SAS: "You aight, cause you always aight. But you've had better days."
Mad Dog: "I think [Molly looks] ordinary… pic.twitter.com/VZASB5eza5
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) April 24, 2024
It’s the second awkward moment in recent weeks involving Russo commenting on Qerim’s appearance. On April 10, when both Qerim and Smith appeared on the show wearing white outfits, Russo asked if they had just gotten married.
“Who said ‘I do’ first between the two of you,” Russo joked.
“Who said ‘I don’t?’” Qerim replied sarcastically.
After Chris Russo jokes that Stephen A. Smith and Molly Qerim look like they got married, the First Take co-hosts address social media rumors they're dating.
SAS: "There's nothing going on. America's been lying about that for years… here's the upside to all of that: they know… pic.twitter.com/5qF4rHalNd
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) April 10, 2024
These two recent outfit-related incidents pale in comparison to a show earlier this year, where guest Dan Orlovsky sniffed Qerim’s shoe. Yes, that actually happened.
“Are you really sniffing the shoe?” Qerim asked in disbelief. “I just got the shoe and I have tights on. Don’t be weird.”
Only it was too late.
Um, did Dan Orlovsky just sniff Molly Qerim's shoe? pic.twitter.com/u6LqRmpnAs
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) January 2, 2024
[@awfulannouncing]
About Arthur Weinstein
Arthur spends his free time traveling around the U.S. to sporting events, state and national parks, and in search of great restaurants off the beaten path.