ESPN Analyst Harry Douglas Tells Mike Greenberg He Once 'Tortured' A Snake By Lighting It On Fire

Most people don't like snakes. Finding a snake in your house is a major fear for most people. But I'm not sure that the majority would handle that situation quite like former NFL wide receiver and current ESPN analyst Harry Douglas did.

At the very end of Get Up, host Mike Greenberg shared a tweet from another ESPN analyst, Heather Dinich.

Dinich posted a picture and says she went to water a plant -- which looks to be just outside her house -- and found a snake.

Pretty terrifying, though it does appear as if this plant is outdoors, based on my strong detective work. That, of course, being me noticing the clear outdoor outlet and vinyl siding.

Deductive stuff, I know.

Attempting to end ESPN morning show Get Up on a light note, Greenberg shared the tweet with Douglas and asked him what he would do in that situation.

And that's when things took a really dark turn.

"I found a snake in my house a few years ago," Douglas began, innocently enough. "And, I tortured that little sucker because he could have got to my kids.

"I lit him on fire, Greeny. If I was Heather, I would have poured gasoline on him and lit him on fire and gotten rid of him."

"That wasn't what I expected at all," an exasperated Greenberg responded.

Then, after an awkward silence, Greenberg simply says, "See you tomorrow, First Take starts now."

This is a bizarre thing for Douglas to say, especially on ESPN. I get the whole "protecting my kids," but at the same time what kind of snake are we talking about?

It's not like Douglas lives in the middle of the Amazon jungle. There's no way an anaconda or boa constrictor got into his house.

Chances are it was a relatively harmless snake.

Now, I'd have been scared out of my mind, harmless or not. But I can't think of any circumstance where I would light an animal on fire. Unless it was literally the only possible option.

I'm guessing Douglas had other options. They do say that torturing animals is the first sign of a serial killer.

I'm not saying Douglas is a serial killer. But if ESPN employees suddenly start going missing, I'd have to think Douglas might make the suspect list.

Written by
Dan began his sports media career at ESPN, where he survived for nearly a decade. Once the Stockholm Syndrome cleared, he made his way to Outkick. He is secure enough in his masculinity to admit he is a cat-enthusiast with three cats, one of which is named “Brady” because his wife wishes she were married to Tom instead of him.