ATLANTA — College football legend Desmond Howard revels in his role as one of the most despised athletes in Ohio history despite being born and raised in Cleveland.
Desmond Howard, Ohio native, becomes a Michigan icon
That’s because Howard became a national sensation playing for Ohio State’s archenemies, the Michigan Wolverines, where he won the coveted Heisman trophy. Worse for longtime Buckeye fans, Howard sealed up the Heisman votes with a dominating performance in the teams’ annual rivalry game in which his Wolverines triumphed over the Buckeyes.
After Howard retired from the NFL, where he was the Super Bowl MVP with the Green Bay Packers, Howard seamlessly translated his football knowledge into a prosperous career as an NCAA football analyst for “College GameDay” for ESPN.
On the eve of the national championship between Notre Dame and the team he hates and frequently trolls, the Buckeyes, Howard was asked to assess each squad and what they needed to do to emerge victorious.
Desmond Howard explains matchup between Ohio State and Notre Dame
“How [the Buckeyes] can win on Monday? Oh, they get, they get Notre Dame in the track meet,” he said at the ‘Allstate Party at the Playoffs’ event in Atlanta, the site of the CFP Championship game. “It’s like trying to compete in the track meet against the 2012 Jamaican 4×4 relay team and Usain Bolt. They’re gonna blow your doors off,” he said while laughing, but eluding to the fact that it behooves the Fighting Irish to slow the game down.
The high-scoring Buckeyes only lost two games in 2024, but could have possibly gone undefeated as both games were head-scratchers in their own unique way.
The Buckeyes can avenge their 2 losses this season
The good thing is that the Buckeyes were able to avenge that loss in the Rose Bowl in early January. The Scarlett and Gray thrashed the Ducks, 41-21, after boat racing Oregan in the first half, 34-0 and coasting the rest of the way.
The Buckeyes have a chance to acquit themselves and erase the memory of a crushing loss to their hated rivals, the Wolverines, in November 2024. This will happen with a win against Notre Dame in the national championship game on Monday night in Atlanta.
