Will Howard has a long history with Texas, but how much of it is applicable to Friday?

The headline of this Ohio State team has been the dazzling play of the wide receivers, most notably true freshman Jeremiah Smith, and the boatloads of talent on the defensive side of the ball, but one player on that opposing sideline is a little bit more familiar for the Texas Longhorns.

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OSU quarterback Will Howard is a seasoned veteran at this point. Howard has appeared in 48 games in his career, 34 of which came in his first four seasons of college at Kansas State. Given that the Longhorns and Wildcats shared a conference leading up to this 2024 season, it’s easy to see why there is history between Howard and the Horns.

Howard started in three matchups versus the Longhorns: 2020, 2021, and 2023. In those three games, Howard went 51-for-81 for 566 yards, six touchdowns and three interceptions. What’s damning is his overall record: 0-3 against the Longhorns.

“For me personally, that was the only team I didn’t beat when I was in the Big 12,” Howard said Sunday. “So, yeah, there’s definitely, personally for me, a little extra motivation there, because I never got the chance to beat these guys. Played them four years. I mean, they’re always a good team, but I don’t think — none of those games were unwinnable. Last year we lost in overtime. So definitely excited to get another chance at these guys.

Because of the hilarity and portal-heavy nature of the current college football world, Ohio State’s starting quarterback once played against Sam Ehlinger. Howard and the current Colt faced off in 2020, with the then-freshman quarterback being thoroughly outplayed by the Texas senior. Current Longhorn David Gbenda was one of two players to pick Howard off, and the Longhorns dominated 69-31 on the backs of three touchdowns apiece from Bijan Robinson and Roschon Johnson.

Howard was just a freshman, and his defense gave him no favors. Where Texas really began to show up in Howard’s nightmares was one year later, in the final game of the 2021 season.

Howard, filling in for the injured Skylar Thompson, was the signal caller for a seven-win K-State team heading to Austin. Howard’s game started off fairly well, out-running B.J. Foster a 71-yard scoring scamper to give KSU a one-point lead in the 2nd quarter.

From that point on, however, Texas’ worst defense under Steve Sarkisian wreaked havoc on the young QB. With seven minutes left in the fourth Howard had just 30 total passing yards, and the Wildcats failed to put a single point on the board in the second half. The climax of the game’s intensity was on a 4th and 1 deep in Texas territory that Howard and Deuce Vaughn failed to convert.

The fourth-down stop was the eventual dagger in the game, but it wasn’t the last time Howard faced a key fourth down in Austin.

When the two teams faced each other in early November of 2023, KSU was a top-25 team, with Howard looking like one of the best QBs in the Big 12. Texas was the No. 7 team in the country but had a major road bump in Maalik Murphy starting in place of Quinn Ewers.

Howard lead a major come from behind effort against the Longhorns in the fourth quarter. With some turnover luck and Howard’s strong throws, KSU erased a 20-point deficit to take the lead in the span of 2.5 minutes of game time. Bert Auburn would give Texas a three-point lead with 6:03 left, but Howard would orchestrate a drive that resulted in a game-tying field goal with one second left to send the game to overtime.

Texas’ first OT possession resulted in a field goal, a bad result for the Longhorns that only got worse as Howard’s first throw got Kansas State to the seven yard line. With the dual-threat QB and a strong run game, Texas would need to make the year’s most important goal-line stand to win this game.

Howard’s first run got them to within the five, but after two incompletions KSU head coach Chris Klieman was faced with a decision. Go for a 4th and 4 at the goal line, or kick the field goal to extend the game?

Klieman went aggressive, and with 100,000 screaming fans, Howard took the snap in an empty backfield. Just like two years before, the game was on the line on fourth down. Howard dropped back but was almost immediately met by the bull rush of Byron Murphy II, forcing Howard into Barryn Sorrell. Scrambling, Howard turned and slipped, the ball floating in the air into the outstretching arms of T’Vondre Sweat. The game was over, and even though Sweat somehow dropped the pick, Texas’ CFP hopes survived, and Howard was 0-3 versus the Longhorns.

Many of the names mentioned above are still a part of this current Longhorn defense, as nine of the 17 players who took over 20 snaps in that 2023 game are currently on this Texas defense.

Texas knows how Howard plays, he’s a power dual-threat who isn’t afraid to tuck it on a QB dive, but also has the arm strength to beat you overtop.

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Howard never had a Smith or an Emeka Egbuka-level receiver at Kansas State, but the proof is in the results for this Texas defense. If Texas can keep Howard to that 26 point per game average he put up against the Horns in his three games, Texas may just have a chance in Arlington to deliver an outcome all too familiar to Howard when he sees burnt orange across from him.