WHERE'S UNC?
First Take viewers beg for Shannon Sharpe to return from ‘forever vacation’ and grumble ‘when is he coming back?’
Meanwhile, Sharpe recently discussed his former Undisputed co-star Skip Bayless reportedly leaving the FS1 show
FIRST Take viewers badly want Shannon Sharpe back on the show.
The NFL Hall-of-Famer has been enjoying a break from the set since early July.
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Sharpe, 56, went on vacation alongside Stephen A. Smith and host Molly Qerim.
But Smith and Qerim have already been back in the studio.
Meanwhile, the ex-NFL tight end has only been shooting his Nightcap and Club Shay Shay shows since then.
He was absent on Monday morning again with Qerim, 40, joined by Marcus Spears, Brian Windhorst, and Kendrick Perkins to start things off on First Take.
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Sharpe was nowhere to be seen even as his Nightcap co-host Chad "Ochocinco" Johnson made an appearance during the episode.
And TV viewers called on the NFL legend to return.
"@ShannonSharpe big Unc, when you coming back on @FirstTake? You been on vacation 4eva," one wrote,
"Why is @ShannonSharpe missing from #FirstTake," another added.
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"@MollyQerim single-handedly carrying @espn these days lol," a third said.
"How the hell is @ochocinco on First Take but @ShannonSharpe ain't lol," one wrote.
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Shannon joined First Take last year after his seven-year run with FS1's Undisputed came to an end.
It's been recently reported that his former Undisputed co-host Skip Bayless is set to leave the debate show this summer.
Sharpe recently discussed Bayless' alleged exit, saying he still hopes to see his former on-air sparing partner successful.
"I want Skip to win," he said on Nightcap.
Shannon Sharpe's playing career
Shannon Sharpe was a three-time Super Bowl champion before his heavyweight media career.
The former tight end played in the NFL from 1990 until 2003 - mostly with the Denver Broncos.
He was part of the Super Bowl championship teams in 1998 and 1999 as well as the Baltimore Ravens' title-winning team in 2001.
Sharpe was an eight-time Pro Bowler and voted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
He finished with 10,060 career receiving yards from 815 receptions with 62 touchdowns.
The ex-NFL star has had just as strong a career on television screens since retiring.
"I wanted Skip to succeed, and Undisputed,
"And just because I’m not there, that doesn’t mean I don’t want him to succeed.
"I just realized that he and I couldn’t succeed at the same table.
"I’m not jealous of anybody, I’ve never been jealous of anybody. That’s not how I operate.
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"I don’t know what Skip’s going to do. I wish him the best."
Sharpe was said to have left Undisputed in big part because of his falling out with Bayless.