Will Howard shares how Ohio State prepared him for NFL opportunity

Will Howard not only led Ohio State to a national title during his first and only season with the Buckeyes, but he also helped his draft stock with his performance this past year.

Howard threw for 4,010 yards and 35 touchdowns, with 10 interceptions in 2024, while completing better than 73 percent of his passes. He set career highs in completion percentage, yards, touchdowns and QB rating at Ohio State after spending the previous four seasons at Kansas State.

After winning the national title earlier this month, Will Howard shared how his time at Ohio State helped prepare him for the NFL.

“Coming into this year, I didn’t feel like I was in the best place I felt like I could put myself in in the draft,” Will Howard said. “And I felt like I wanted another shot at it. I felt like coming here to Ohio State was the best opportunity I had to better my chances at the next level.”

Howard entered the transfer portal after throwing for 5,786 yards and 48 touchdowns during four seasons at Kansas State. He had an up-and-down career with the Wildcats, before flourishing and playing like one of the best QBs in the country in 2024.

“I’ve been developed here like I’ve never been developed before. I’ve been pushed; I’ve been coached. I’ve been nit-picked to the point where I’ve gotten so much better here,” Will Howard said. “And yea, that’s a credit to coach Day and coach Kelly… all these guys for investing a lot of time into me. We’ll worry about the NFL whenever that comes up, but I’m just so glad we got this one done.”

Ohio State head coach Ryan Day expects Will Howard to excel at the next level and believes he has all of the tools to be a successful NFL quarterback.

“When Will’s feet are right he is as good as anybody I’ve been around – his accuracy, his ability to see, the way he commands the team, his work he puts in,” Ryan Day said.

He added that Howard is also excellent from a mental standpoint as far as understanding football, reading defenses and getting his offense in the right play.

“I think the thing that nobody is probably going to understand how much credit he deserves is how much he can take on,” Day said. “To say 90 percent of the calls that went in the other day had two or three plays into it. So he’s calling a play or two in the huddle and then checking the play at the line of scrimmage.

“That’s NFL material right there. That’s special. So whichever organization decides to draft Will is going to get a pro Day 1 walking in the door.”