ESPN’s Molly Qerim gets one-word high praise from $100M-man Stephen A. Smith

The “First Take” co-host gets surprised with a gift and a heartfelt speech from Smith live on the show.
Molly Qerim attends the 2022 ABC Disney Upfront at Basketball City in New York.
Molly Qerim attends the 2022 ABC Disney Upfront at Basketball City in New York. | IMAGO / NurPhoto

Stephen A. Smith may be the voice of ESPN’s First Take, but Molly Qerim is the face of it.

The 40-year-old Qerim is the co-host with her new $100-million partner Smith and always wows with her fit game on and off the show. We’ve seen her rocking a Canadian denim tuxedo miniskirt fit where she flaunted her legs, to a “locked in” leather miniskirt, to an old-school Adidas dress and pinky ring while out in New Orleans, Louisiana, for the Super Bowl, to most recently in her sleek look with her hair back and glasses for Ash Wednesday.

Molly Qerim
Molly Qerim/Isntagram

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Qerim has been with the show since 2015 and has grown in popularity and overcame some hilarious gaffes like most recently where she had two of them live that made her say she “hates everybody.”

Smith had a heartfelt speech for Qerim as the crew had flowers delivered to her during the show:

”Molly, that is for you from the First Take team. We know as I tell you all the time when you think I’m joking and you just interrupt me and summarily dismiss me. I constantly try to tell you, you are the matriarch of the show. It doesn’t work without you.”

The key one-word there is “matriarch.” That says it all about how much Smith and the rest of the crew think about her.

Molly Qerim
Molly Qerim/Instagram
Molly Qerim
Molly Qerim/Instagram

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Qerim hilariously said in the middle of his speech when he said she dismisses him, ”I barely talk.”

Here’s the full clip.

She went on to add how proud she is of the show and how “now we have so many (female contributors). I feel like we have just as many women as men. I love it.”

Congrats to Molly Qerim and all the women out there working hard. What a sweet gesture and moment.

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Matt Ryan
MATT RYAN

Matt Ryan is a dedicated sports journalist with over 20 years of experience in digital and linear media. After receiving a Masters in Journalism from USC, he’s worked for Fox Sports, NBC Sports, Yahoo Sports, USA Today Sports Media Group, and Bally Sports, while holding various leadership roles along the way.