Pattern problem?

I saw this really nice scarf on TV the other day and wanted to make the same scarf for my mom for her birthday next month. However, I couldn’t figure out what sort of stitch it is. Here is the photo:

Also, do you have any suggestions on what size needle and weight of yarn I should use? I only started knitting a couple of weeks ago, so I’ll need all the help I can get. Thanks~!

It looks like plain stockinette stitch on bigger than normal needles, like maybe a size 15 or so.

It might be a fishermans rib which is the same as abrioche rib. Or just a simple k1 p1 rib on large needles.