Joe Burrow reflects on friendship with Dwayne Haskins, competition at Ohio State

Following his tragic death, many former coaches and teammates have reflected on their relationship with former Ohio State star Dwayne Haskins, with current Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow being the latest. Although the competed for the starting job during their time together, there was a mutual respect in the room.

During an appearance on the Full Send Podcast, Joe Burrow spoke highly of Dwayne Haskins and the competition between the two at Ohio State which ultimately led to an LSU transfer.

“Yeah, we were close,” said Burrow. “I mean, we were competitive. We were competing for a job for three years and we became close through that. We kind of have this interesting relationship where we were pushing each other every day and getting better. And saw each other grow from when we first got in to where we were by the end of it.

“So it was tough. It was a tough day when that happened and the Ohio State community kind of came out and helped everybody along that road.”

Haskins death sparked many gestures by the Ohio State fans around the country, including a candlelight vigil outside the stadium and a special moment during the spring game. His impact on coaches, teammates and fans has been evident.

Chris Olave on Dwayne Haskins

Chris Olave’s freshman year was 2018, which was the year Haskins threw for 50 touchdowns as part of a record-breaking season. He connected with Olave for three of them, but left the biggest impact on his younger teammate off the field.

“I came in at 17 to college,” Olave said on The Rich Eisen Show. “He gave me that boost of confidence. Just being around him. He kind of lifted the whole room up just with energy and his confidence and his mindset. That kind of helped me, being on the same field as him, especially looking up to him as a leader that year. That helped me a lot. He kind of boosted my confidence.”

In his four years with the Buckeyes, Olave also broke records. He totaled 35 receiving touchdowns, passing David Boston for the most in Ohio State program history. It was quite a way to end his Buckeyes career, along with 935 receiving yards as a senior with CJ Stroud under center.

Now in the NFL, Olave looks to break through as the next in a long line of Ohio State wide receivers. He even joins one of those to come before him in Michael Thomas on the New Orleans Saints roster.