ESPN analyst Hugh Douglas got into an altercation with his Numbers Never Lie co-host Michael Smith which allegedly involved racial slurs .
The incident happened at the House of Blues in Orlando during a charity event sponsored by the National Association of Black Journalists.
Douglas, who is about 6? 2” and somewhere in the neighborhood of 300 pounds, was allegedly drunk when he tried to get up on stage with the DJ at the event that was part of the organization’s convention. When Smith either wouldn’t help him or discouraged him from doing so, Douglas allegedly threatened to beat up his much smaller colleague. According to The Big Lead , “… Smith tried to walk away, at which point Douglas grabbed Smith’s wrist and hurled two racial epithets at him, calling him an “Uncle Tom and a “House N—-.’ ”
Bystanders and security were able to break it up before things got out of hand, and one onlooker described the dust-up as “very ugly.”
An ESPN spokesman said that the sports network was “aware there was a disagreement between Hugh Douglas and Michael Smith on Friday. We are looking into the situation.”
Reportedly, the dispute between the two men got its start the night before when Smith and his other Numbers Never Lie co-host Jemele Hill were speaking to several hundred association members about sports journalism. Douglas, who may have been drunk at that time too, showed up and demanded the microphone. “[Hill] apparently had to make some effort to keep the mic out of his hands. Douglas was not happy, and neither were Hill and Smith. This was embarrassing,” Deadspin reports.
Douglas, 41, a defensive end, played 10 years in the NFL with the New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, and Jacksonville Jaguars. He has been an ESPN studio analyst since 2011. He was named defensive Rookie of the Year in 1995 by the Associated Press and was a three-time Pro Bowler.