Will Howard, Cody Simon offer glimpse into championship celebration: ‘Sleep is for the weak’

Between the on-field celebration, the multiple postgame interviews, and the team hotel camaraderie into the early morning, Will Howard didn’t get much sleep in the hours following Ohio State‘s 34-23 win over Notre Dame to claim the 2025 College Football Playoff National Championship on Monday night.

Not that the veteran Buckeyes quarterback was thinking about sleep during Tuesday morning’s CFP champions press conference.

“Yeah, sleep is for the weak,” Howard deadpanned to laughter. “We’ll sleep on the plane. We want to enjoy this one and celebrate it accordingly with our teammates. We got back to the hotel and really just hung out with each other, and that was awesome. Just getting to share some fellowship with the guys and everyone that had a hand in this season.

“I’m excited because now we get to go home to Columbus and do the same thing, and just enjoy some time with our brothers for the last time. Because this was our last game together, and it’s kind of sad to think about honestly. When I sit back and think that I’m not going to get the change to wear a Buckeye uniform again, I’m not going to get to wear the scarlet and gray, it’s a little bittersweet. I’m just so thankful we were able to end it the right way.”

Cody Simon: CFP National Championship run ‘changed the course of my life and the course of this team’

Ohio State senior linebacker Cody Simon admitted he was able to close his eyes for “a good 2-3 hours” Monday night, but acknowledged the most rewarding part of the entire experience has been the special moments created alongside his teammates.

“The wins are all great, but I’m never going to forget my teammates, all the moments we shared in the locker room, the weight training, in the cafeteria. You create so many unbreakable bonds through this journey and through the years, I’m so happy to be a part of this team,” Simon said Tuesday morning. “When we started this playoff, there was just something different about when we all came together, you felt the energy, you felt the togetherness of the team. And some of those moments that I’ve felt during this playoff I’ll never forget, because it changed the course of my life and the course of this team. And I’m just so thankful I got to go through it with these guys.”

Howard and the rest of the Ohio State squad made their way back to Columbus later Tuesday afternoon, just in time for the Buckeyes quarterback to delve into the postgame celebration during an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show.

“It was a lot of everything. A lot of good fellowship, getting together, maybe a couple of adult beverages included in there, and we had a great time,” Howard told McAfee. “It was already so late we kind of just hung out at the hotel and kicked it. Hopefully we’ll see what happens here in Columbus the next couple of days.”