Once a cornerstone of sports debate culture, Fox Sports 1’s Undisputed slowly faded since the departure of Shannon Sharpe in 2023 and its death knell became official earlier this month when Skip Bayless left the show and the company. This left a rather large hole in FS1’s morning programming during weekdays and the media world has been wondering what the network would do to fill it.
On Wednesday, a new report emerged suggesting FOX has made its decision.
Ryan Glasspiegel of the New York Post reports FS1 will replace the Undisputed time slot with a new show called The Facility featuring Emmanuel Acho, LeSean McCoy, James Jones and Chase Daniel. All four are former NFL players, and the first three most recently worked together on FS1’s Speak. Daniel is a rising media star between this hiring and his insider podcast with Dianna Russini over at The Athletic. The new show will air from 10 a.m. ET to 12 p.m. ET, per Glasspiegel.
However, Fox Sports additionally took this opportunity to fiddle with its entire morning weekday lineup. Glasspiegel’s report includes the introduction of a new show called Breakfast Ball, featuring Craig Carton (currently hosting The Carton Show on FS1), Mark Schlereth, and Danny Parkins, who recently joined the network.
As far as what will happen to Keyshawn Johnson and Paul Pierce, who became Bayless’ regulars on Undisptued in its dying days? The pair will be replacing the Acho-McCoy-Jones triumvirate on Speak alongside Joy Taylor.
While the other adjustments in programming can be chalked up mostly as fine-tuning, what’s replacing Undisputed is big news. For many years Bayless and Sharpe drove engagement and viewership in the prime time morning slot with outrageous takes and passionate arguments. By going with four former NFLers, it seems FS1 is hoping to rope in new viewership via name recognition, and a new combination of talent will help ratings rise back to the high levels Undisputed enjoyed prior to Sharpe’s departure.
It is a new era at Fox Sports, and new faces must emerge with familiar figures long gone. Soon it seems we’ll find out who will try to follow in Bayless’ footsteps.
