Meghan Markle is one of the most famous women on the planet.
But even she has to deal with the phenomenon of mediocre dudes thinking they can rise to her level if they find her at a particularly low point.
Yes, ESPN host and known doofus Ryen Russillo is back in the news, and once again, he’s riding the coattails of a much more successful woman.
You might remember Ryen from the time that a guest on his show wrongly suggested that Travis Kelce had been benched due to too much “partying” with Taylor Swift.
Now, the sports media personality has once again veered out of his lane, this time by sharing the bonkers tale of his encounter with the Duchess of Sussex.
ESPN Host Says Meghan Markle Shot Him Down
During a recent appearance on Bill Simmons’ podcast (Simmons, perhaps not coincidentally, has been highly critical of Meghan in the past), Ryen shared the story of a time when he crossed paths with Meghan at a celebrity flag football game in 2014.
This was in 2014, about two years before Meghan started dating Prince Harry.
So Ryen decided to shoot his shot — but it seems that the future duchess was not receptive to his advances.
“It was all of the [Sports Illustrated] swimsuit models. So, nobody was really paying any attention to Markle,” he claimed (via Page Six).
“I was like, ‘That’s my lane. She’s probably doubting herself a little bit right now.’ She’s never been more obtainable.”
The following week, Russillo messaged Meghan on Instagram and asked if she’d like to appear on his show to promote Suits Season 4, which was soon to premiere.
Sliding Into Duchess Meg’s DMs
“It was a very soft sell,” he explained to Simmons.
“It was, ‘Hey, I know the new season … is coming out if you ever want to come on the show to promote it.’ It was really professional.”
But while Russillo may have played it safe, it seems that Meghan wasn’t fooled by his approach.
“It was ice cold,” Rusillo said of her response. “It was, ‘Oh, I don’t know anything about sports, but thanks for the offer.”
What Happened Next?
The rest, as they say, is history.
In the summer of 2016, Meghan started dating Harry, and she’s now a member of the world’s most famous family.
We don’t know if she’s become a sports fan in the years since, but she did co-produce a Netflix docuseries about Polo that premiered this week.
Of course, it’s also possible that she pled ignorance about the sports world just to wriggle out of appearing on Russillo’s show.
After all, you don’t go from actress to duchess without knowing how to navigate tricky social situations.
Meghan Markle Rejected ESPN Host Who Thought She Was ‘Obtainable’: Report was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip.