January 20^th marked the biggest day of the college football season as Ohio State took on Notre Dame. It has been a rough road for Ohio State, with 23-year-old quarterback Will Howard having faced adversity to get to this day. In November 2023, Howard had a decision to make: leave Kansas State, where he had played since 2020, and workout for NFL scouts for a potential pro career, or finish up his last year elsewhere. He found his answer in Ohio State. “When I started talking to Ohio State, everything kind of lined up. I had a list of things I was looking for, in terms of needing to go somewhere where there was a lot of talent around me and somewhere I could compete for a national championship,” he said in an interview. With someone with NFL ambitions, Ohio State seemed like the perfect opportunity. “At the end of the day, I want to go be a starting quarterback in the NFL. I feel like the best place to stick as a quarterback in the NFL is as a first- or second-round pick in the NFL draft. Going to Ohio State gives me a chance to make a jump and leap into that conversation.”

Howard’s transition to Ohio State wasn’t always smooth. The following November, the team lost to big time rival Michigan State in a 13-10 upset. Howard said he relied on God following the loss. “I know that God is putting those obstacles in front of us to grow us and there’s a reason for it. I’m going to just trust the plan,” he said. “We got to trust in the Lord and lean on Him no matter what, through the ups and the downs. I tried to just get into my Bible and pray a little bit. Just come back to the Lord and say, ‘I need You.’” He added that he trusts in the Lord when things don’t make sense. “When you come to Him in a humble way, it changes your perspective. I lay it down for Him and say, ‘God, I trust You. I don’t know why this happened but it happened for a reason. I’m going to trust it.'”

Ohio State has had a culture of Christianity throughout its season, with several team members leading revival on campus. And through it all, Ohio State has managed to fight its way to the national championship. After the team’s big win over Oregon during the Rose Bowl, he acknowledged his faith again. “First and foremost, I gotta thank my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, for giving me this opportunity to be on this stage in the Rose Bowl,” he said. “Younger me would be in awe right now.”