Between the “lunatic fringe” and the perception around Ohio State, Kirk Herbstreit has plenty of bones to pick with the Buckeyes.
But the face of ESPN’s college football coverage recently made some supportive points about a team whose fanbase he often likes to unnerve.
With Ohio State on the doorstep of a National Championship game appearance — with only Texas standing in its way — he took a few moments on Thursday’s College GameDay to address a perception issue, one seemingly perpetrated by one of his colleagues in Desmond Howard.
“The way I look at Ohio State right now, like any championship-caliber team… the key is you want your team to peak at the right time,” the Michigan alum said. “Now, you don’t know what’s going to cause them to peak when they do, but if you peak at the right time, that’s when you’re going to go on and win a championship… A lot of people look at the Michigan loss; that may have been the trigger for Ohio State.
“Listen, we knew all season long they were probably the most talented roster in all of college football. They paid $20 million for these guys — and we knew these guys would deliver. It was just a matter of when. Now, they look — let me finish,” Howard added as Herbstreit tried to interject.
Herbstreit, clearly irritated by the “$20 million” quip, pushed back.
“It’s true. It’s facts,” Howard replied as he doubled down.
Money doesn’t guarantee wins, though. And neither does the perception that Ohio State “bought” its way to success.
“There’s this perception that they went out and spent $20 million on players,” Herbstreit said. “Nine of their 11 starting defensive players are three-year starters. They’ve been there for three years. They’ve lost some tough games. That’s what I think is interesting about this team. You brought in [Alabama transfer] Caleb Downs, who I think is a great player, but that’s it — that’s the only guy on defense.
“They brought in a backup running back [Ole Miss transfer] Quinshon Judkins, who hasn’t played a ton, he’s a good back. And they’ve brought in Will Howard, and they brought in a center from Alabama [Seth McLaughlin] who’s hurt… The perception is they went out and bought $20 million. The reality is they spent $20 million to keep those guys from leaving and going elsewhere.”
That’s when Howard mentioned that Ohio State went out and “bought” freshman sensation wide receiver Jeremiah Smith.
“Bro, here’s the thing: this, the perception is wrong with Ohio State,” Herbstreit replied. “The perception is they went out and found players. The reality is that this is a veteran defense… it’s a hardened team that’s been through a lot of sh*t, and I think that’s what makes them really have a little bit of like, ‘This is our last stance,’ after that Michigan game.”
The Ohio State-Michigan rivalry is alive and well, not just on the football field but also on the set of GameDay.