Stephen A. Smith made an excruciatingly unfortunate error during Tuesday’s episode of ESPN’s Frist Take that left viewers cringing.
The sports analyst has become known for his forays into the political sphere over the past year but this week he may have gone too far as he accidentally let it slip into his day job.
Smith was discussing the Houston Texans’ dominant playoff victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers when he made an all-time mistake live on air, confusing political figures for professional sports stars.
During the segment, he attempted to praise Texans’ Christian Kirk wide receiver for helping to spearhead Houston’s rampant offense.
However, instead of giving the wideout the credit he deserved, Smith accidentally gave the nod to Charlie Kirk, the late Turning USA founder.
‘We saw Charlie Kirk catch eight receptions for 144 yards,’ Smith said.
The glaring error was quickly spotted by First Take host Shae Peppler Cornette, who immediately corrected the longtime sports analyst.
Smith, clearly mortified by the error, swiftly backtracked, saying: ‘I’m sorry, I apologize. Oh my God, I meant Christian Kirk.’
Despite Smith’s immediate effort to correct himself, the humiliating mix-up didn’t go unnoticed by viewers who shared their stunned reactions on social media.
‘Oh yea this an all timer,’ one user posted, responding to a clip of the incident.
‘Bro I jus f***ing busted out laughing in public,’ said another, while a third added: ‘Hang it in the video section of the Louvre.’
‘He saw his career flash before his eyes,’ one viewer claimed, while another said that ‘this gotta be a top 5 Stephen A clips of all time.’
‘Charlie Kirk catching 8 receptions for 144 yards is a sentence I never thought I’d hear in 2026,’ wrote another with a subtle reference to Charlie Kirk’s death last September.
‘This what happen when you have too many interest. Intermingled,’ claimed one social media user, seemingly blaming Smith’s recent ramped-up interest in politics and his hints at running for office.
More to follow.
