Friday was a very sad day for sports fans around the world, as one of the most iconic shows of this century came to an end. ESPN aired its final episode of Around the Horn on Friday afternoon before the show officially comes to an end.

For the final episode, ESPN brought back some of the most iconic characters from the show to do one final FaceTime together, a slot typically reserved at the end of the show for that day's winner. Jackie MacMullan returned to the show alongside Frank Isola, Kevin Blackistone and Tim Cowlishaw.

For his final goodbye, Cowlishaw took a parting shot at his network for butting out Around the Horn as it continues to favor shows with former athletes instead of reporters, via Awful Announcing.

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“I wanna thank ESPN for the opportunity that I did not seek and never expected to get back in 2002,” Cowlishaw said. “I would also like to say that while ESPN is currently gearing itself towards hiring athletes instead of journalists, did you not see the 32 points I scored in an intramural game at UT? My birdies at 8 and 16 at Augusta back in 2002?”

Cowlishaw was partially joking, but there seemed to be some sting behind the message. Earlier in the week after it was announced that Around the Horn was going off the air, a rumor surfaced that ESPN was contemplating replacing it with a show centered around Shannon Sharpe.

The Worldwide Leader has faced some criticism over the past few years as it has leaned into that more athlete-focused approach. Pat McAfee is now one of the faces of the network and has his own time slot for The Pat McAfee Show while also appearing on College GameDay in the fall.

Even First Take, probably the most well-known show on ESPN in the mornings, replaced the spot alongside Stephen A. Smith that used to be held by Skip Bayless and Max Kellerman with athletes. Shannon Sharpe, Kendrick Perkins, Ryan Clark and many others rotate in the debate chair as more and more former players get on TV.