Things couldn’t have gotten worse for Will Howard when he took the field in the second half of last year’s game in Texas.
With Kansas State trailing 17-7 at halftime, Howard, on the second play of the half, stepped up and threw a deep off-balance ball that hit receiver Keegan Johnson right in the arm. But Johnson did, leading to the arrest in Texas.
On the Wildcats’ next possession, Howard fumbled and fumbled at the Kansas State 5-yard line against pressure.
Texas scored three plays later to take a 17-point lead that the Longhorns extended to 27-7 four minutes into the third quarter. It looked like the Longhorns were going to explode then… No. 23 Kansas State, but Howard rallied and opened three straight drives, tying the game with a 32-yard touchdown pass with five minutes left. Howard led that comeback to near perfection, completing 8 of 9 passes for 129 yards and three touchdowns on three scoring drives.
Kansas State lost in overtime, but Howard had a 327-yard, four-touchdown performance. It wasn’t his first big game, it was simply the biggest game of the 2023 season. He won the 2022 Big 12 Championship over TCU, Alabama played in the 2022 Sugar Bowl, and he took Missouri to the final seconds last season.
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Each game taught a lesson to Howard, who transferred to Ohio State in January. As he prepares to lead the No. 2 Buckeyes into a showdown with No. 3 Oregon on Saturday, he looked back on those games and the biggest thing he took away from them.
“It’s best to stay neutral and not get too high or too low,” Howard said. “We know emotions are going to be high, we know the consequences, we know it’s a big deal. At the end of the day, you have to be neutral.”
Howard has done a great job of being a calming presence for the Buckeyes so far this season. He’s not breaking records, but he’s facing one of the best offenses in the country.
Through five games, Ohio State is averaging 46 points, which ranks fourth in the FBS. But Howard didn’t come to Ohio State to beat Michigan State, Iowa State and a weak non-conference schedule. He came to play like Saturday’s matchup against the Ducks. Are you ready?
When Ohio State coach Ryan Day began evaluating Howard in the transfer portal, one of the things he liked was Howard’s experience.
He has played in 39 professional games to date. He won big games, like the 2022 Big 12 title game, and also played a lot in close games. But when you watch film, the outcome of those games isn’t as important as seeing what Howard did on the field.
The first thing that caught Day’s attention was Howard’s mobility.
The 6-foot-4, 235-pound quarterback ran 22 miles per hour this season, the fastest of any Ohio State quarterback, and threw more designed runs against Iowa. He had 10 carries for 28 yards and a touchdown in the game, but it’s not just Howard’s movement on layup calls, but the way he stretches plays.
That’s important in big games, Day said.
“When you start, you start backwards and try to reverse engineer the entire list and start there,” Day said. “Being able to use your legs is really important because that becomes the X factor. He can do it, it goes from there and we made that decision and we felt it was important for us.”
The most important thing for Ohio State is preparation. Oregon’s defense isn’t as dominant as Ohio State’s on paper, but it’s still impressive. According to TruMedia, the Ducks rank 20th in pass rush and 21st in scoring, allowing just 17 points per game.
Howard has always been a movie buff. He likes to watch other teams’ trends, find what works and watch it all happen on the field. But preparing before a big game is different and he goes a step further, he said.
“How can I be first and last every day? Maybe there’s something else I can do this week,” Howard said. “You mean you don’t treat any game bigger than another, but we know how big it is. It’s about entering the game with preparation and confidence and being as prepared as possible.”
But it’s not just about preparing, it’s about playing that preparation.
“When you’re a young player and you’re in a high-pressure situation, you’re going to have to suddenly stop training,” Howard said. “You see that a lot with young quarterbacks.”
That wasn’t the case this year with fifth-year Howard.
When he arrived at Ohio State, he said, he repeatedly noted that he didn’t have to be a superhero, he just had to play in offensive coordinator Chip Kelly’s system.
In five games, he has 1,248 yards, 12 touchdowns, three interceptions and is completing 71.5 percent of his passes. While Day said the taped move stood out, Howard’s accuracy also showed on big plays, especially in the red zone.
It happened this season too. Ohio State leads the nation in red zone efficiency this year, scoring on all 21 opportunities, and Howard’s accuracy and mobility play a big role in that. He is 11 of 17 passing and has seven pass deflections and no interceptions in the red zone, according to TruMedia.
That will be key against Oregon’s defense, which has stayed in the red zone 91% of the time and 58.3% of its plays have been abandoned in the red zone.
You can go down. Howard’s ability to pitch under pressure.
Will he be able to get the ball out quickly in the RPO game? Make the right reads on long throws and connect on deep passes that have failed in the past?
These will all be questions, but no one knows the answers, especially Day.
Howard has been on campus for nine months, and while the Ohio State staff has tried to replicate the high-pressure moments, it’s impossible for Day to know how anyone will react until they’re on the field together.
“Until you’re with them, it’s hard to judge,” Day said.
Ohio State can count on its preparation and the fact that when Howard’s back is against the wall, he usually finds a way to get out of the corner to make a play.
