Michael Smith is finally leaving ESPN.
ESPN has reached a buyout agreement with former SportsCenter anchor Michael Smith, ending his 15-year tenure the company, the New York Post reported Thursday. Since leaving SportsCenter in March 2018, Smith had been limited to infrequent appearances on ESPN’s daytime talk shows.
Smith co-anchored the 6 PM ET SportsCenter for a year, working alongside co-anchor Jemele Hill for most of that time. Titled SC6, their version of SportsCenter was a lightning rod from its debut, particularly after Hill shared her opinions of the U.S. president in September 2017. Hill left SportsCenter a month before Smith and reached a buyout with ESPN more than a year ago.
Until ESPN cancelled SC6, Smith was a frequent presence on the network. He hosted Numbers Never Lie and its successor His & Hers from 2011-16 and also served as a guest host on NFL Live. He was also a frequent panelist on Around the Horn.
Smith joined ESPN from the Boston Globe, where he was a reporter from 2001-04.
He told the Post that he will be moving on to a new sports-related start-up called (Co)laboratory, where he will serve as executive vice president and chief content officer.
[News from the New York Post 10.3]
