Shae Cornette Named New 'First Take' Host After Molly Qerim's ESPN Exit

One month after Molly Qerim left ESPN and her post as host of First Take, the network has named Shae Cornette as new host of its morning show.

ESPN confirmed to Michael McCarthy and Ryan Glasspiegel of Front Office Sports that Cornette will take over as host of First Take.

David Roberts, executive vice president at ESPN, issued a statement to McCarthy and Glasspiegel about Cornette's new gig:

"Shae is meticulous in her preparations, connects naturally with our show's high-profile personalities, and has a unique ability to keep lively debate engaging and on point. Her professionalism, presence and energy make her an ideal fit for First Take and a great addition to one of ESPN's most successful franchises."

Austin Karp of the Sports Business Journal reported on Sept. 15 that Qerim, who had been with ESPN since 2006, turned down a contract extension and would be leaving the network when her current deal expired at the end of this year.

Later that same day, in a post on her Instagram Stories (h/t Emily Bicks of SI.com), Qerim confirmed the news, adding that it "came out earlier than I intended, and not in the way I hoped" before saying that hosting First Take was "one of the great honors of my career."

The next day, Stephen A. Smith said on his radio show that Qerim "abruptly resigned as host of the show."

ESPN president of content Burke Magnus told The Athletic's Richard Deitsch on Sept. 18 that the "feeling" within the network was that Qerim wanted to "to do other things" and they tried to include different opportunities in their negotiations with her, but he also stated she was going to "come off" as host of First Take at the end of this year even if she had agreed to a new contract.

Magnus did go on to praise Qerim, calling her "an awesome person" and saying there was "no controversy" with her decision. He also told Deitsch the network was going to have a tryout period of 30-45 days before deciding on a new host of First Take.

Thursday falls right within that timeline, with Cornette getting the prime gig working with Smith and the rotating cast of panelists on the daily show. Peter Schrager, Amina Smith, MJ Acosta, Courtney Cronin, and Joe Fortenbaugh were some of the other ESPN personalities who hosted First Take following Qerim's departure.

Cornette has worked at ESPN since 2020 where she has primarily worked as a SportsCenter anchor. She previously worked in Chicago as a Bears reporter, hosting pre-and post-game shows on the local Fox 32 channel.