Maria Taylor’s time at ESPN has come to an end.
The network announced Wednesday that Taylor’s time with the company has come to an end after the two sides couldn’t agree on an extension. (RELATED: David Hookstead Is The True King In The North When It Comes To College Football)
ESPN president Jimmy Pitaro said the following about her departure:
Maria’s remarkable success speaks directly to her abilities and work ethic. There is no doubt we will miss Maria, but we remain determined to continue to build a deep and skilled talent roster that thoroughly reflects the athletes we cover and the fans we serve. While she chose to pursue a new opportunity, we are proud of the work we’ve done together.
Taylor also released her own statement and told fans the following:
So thankful to Jimmy and all of my great teammates and friends at the SEC Network, College GameDay, Women’s and Men’s college basketball, and the NBA Countdown family — the people who believed in me, encouraged me, pushed me, and lifted me up. Words are inadequate to express my boundless appreciation, and I hope to make them proud.
What an absolutely wild ride for Taylor and ESPN. She’s been in the news nonstop ever since a recording of Rachel Nichols discussing her climb up the network’s ladder was leaked.
The leaked tape from Nichols caused an absolute firestorm of issues at ESPN and pulled back the curtain on alleged issues with race at the company.
Now, Taylor is out the door and no longer working for ESPN. Given all the chaos and anarchy that we’ve seen out of the network over the past few weeks, I can’t say that I’m surprised by this resolution.
ESPN has announced that Malika Andrews will replace Rachel Nichols as sideline reporter during the NBA Finals.
“We believe this is best decision for all concerned in order to keep the focus on the NBA Finals. Rachel will continue to host The Jump.” pic.twitter.com/TE8M8aqem6
— Front Office Sports (@FOS) July 6, 2021
The good news for Taylor is that she won’t be out of a job for long. She’s expected to sign with NBC in the near future, and I have no doubt she’ll get a bag of cash!