Chip Kelly pleased with growth of Will Howard: 'Very rarely does he make the same mistake twice'

Will Howard has passed every test so far this season, his first quarterbacking Ohio State after spending four years at Kansas State.

Howard faced his first real adversity this past weekend at Michigan State, and he demonstrated his mental and physical toughness, bouncing back from an interception and then a big hit that, momentarily, removed him from the game.

Ohio State is No. 3 in the country and 4-0, and Howard is at the center of an offense that’s averaging 534.8 yards of offense, good for fifth nationally and first in the Big Ten.

“I think Will’s done a nice job,” Buckeyes offensive coordinator Chip Kelly said Tuesday. “I think he’s gotten better from Week 1 to Week 4. I think he has a better grasp just because he’s gotten live reps. The toughest position to play in football is quarterback, just from a practice standpoint because they don’t get hit in practice.

“So I think they can get a false sense of security. No matter where you go, in college and in professional football, the quarterback doesn’t get touched in practice, so the game is so much different for the quarterback than it is for any other position. But I admire Will’s toughness. He stands in the pocket.”

Howard did exactly that while trying to throw a 2nd-and-10 pass to sophomore wideout Carnell Tate late in the first half of a 38-7 win over the Spartans. The pass fell incomplete, and Howard hit the ground, lying on his back before getting checked out by Ohio State’s medical staff. He said after the game that he just got the wind knocked out of him.

Howard missed only one Buckeyes offensive play. Their first offensive series of the second half, the 6-foot-4, 235-pound dual threat was back out on the field to orchestrate a 13-play, 76-yard touchdown drive that spanned more than seven minutes of game time.

It also included two fourth down conversions, the second of which saw Howard deliver a strike to a crossing Emeka Egbuka, who turned a reception into a 33-yard, catch-and-run touchdown. Earlier in the game, Howard whipped a three-yard touchdown pass to tight end Gee Scott Jr. on 4th-and-Goal.

“Both of those fourth down throws were both really well thrown against man coverage, just where only Gee could catch it and, really, [only] Emeka could catch it,” Ohio State head coach Ryan Day said Tuesday. “Those were contested throws. You want to give him those opportunities. I’m sure he’s done it before, but to see him do it here for us is different as well.

“So those are big. … Those are all challenging plays where you got to stand in the pocket and you got to hang in there and make those throws. Good to see him make those and build some confidence on that.”

Howard has thrown only two interceptions the first month of the season, and only one of them was really his fault. That came in East Lansing, where he locked onto Egbuka and forced a pass on 3rd-and-4 near midfield. Michigan State linebacker Jordan Turner jumped it, picked it off and returned it 36 yards to the Ohio State 12-yard line. One play later, the Spartans scored their lone touchdown of the night.

For the most part, though, Day and Kelly have been satisfied with how Howard is moving through his progressions.

“I think there’s always a growth with all of that,” Kelly said. “Sometimes it may be a newer route that had gone in, and he doesn’t have as many reps in the bank as he does with some of the other things that we’ve run since day one of spring. But I think every quarterback can improve. Every coach can improve, every player can improve. I think this is a growth game in how you develop, and I hope in game eight, we’re not playing like we played in game four.

“I think as you continue to go on and start to add different elements and different things that are happening, different opponents, that’s always part of it. But the growth is, how do you develop over the course of the season? So I’m pleased with where Will is right now. But that doesn’t mean that he’s arrived. I don’t think you ever arrive in this game. I think every day you got to try to be just a little bit better than you were the day before. And that’s what I love about Will, though.”

Kelly added: “That’s kind of his mindset: ‘How do I get a little bit better, and how do I how do I improve, and how do I help this team win?'”

Kelly explained how, in between drives, he and Howard have “really good conversations” about certain looks Howard’s getting from the opposing defense. What’s more, Kelly noted how, overall, Howard’s done a good job of protecting the football. He’s posted an 8:2 touchdown-to-interception ratio and, according to Pro Football Focus, registered just four turnover-worthy plays.

Howard is completing a career-high 68.6% of his passes, including 19-of-27 (70.4%) between 10-19 air yards, per PFF. He’s thrown for 1,039 yards and taken only one sack. Most importantly, the graduate transfer is continuing to improve.

“Very rarely does he make the same mistake twice,” Kelly said. “I think he learns from every experience when he’s out there.”