Stephen A. Smith & Shannon Sharpe are bringing ESPN's First Take to their HBCUs, per a report by Savannah Now. The news comes as both Savannah State and Winston-Salem State is celebrating homecoming. The news also comes a few weeks after Smith told Sharpe on his podcast “The Stephen A Smith Show that bringing the show to both institutions was in the works.

“If I remember correctly, you did go to Savannah State University…Is that not an HBCU,” Smith said to Sharpe. “Is my alma mater Winston-Salem State University, is that not an HBCU? I'm working on bringing First Take to both universities.”

Sharpe was excited about the news and the prospects of exposing his alma mater to the nation.

“This is the best news for me and for everybody to see where I matriculated at. Where I earned my degree from. And hopefully some of the professors…Dr. Macklemore, Dr. Green…hopefully, they come out because I want to acknowledge them and I want people to see..the Shannon Sharpe you see today, a lot of these people had a hand in helping Shannon Sharpe become what I became.”

Stephen A. Smith has consistently used First Take as a vehicle to promote HBCUs. The show in the past has dedicated Wednesdays to showcasing HBCUs and speaking about the value of the black college experience. First Take was also broadcast live from the campus of Florida A&M University in honor of FAMU alumnus Will Packer who had an amphitheater on campus named after him. during the 2021 homecoming festivities.

First Take will be broadcast live on the campus of Savannah State on November 6th and then they will travel to Winston-Salem State for a live broadcast on November 7th