Still haunted by ‘nightmares,’ Ohio State, Will Howard ready for second crack at Oregon in Rose Bowl rematch

LOS ANGELES — Will Howard sat, helmeted head in his hands, having slid to a stop at Oregon’s 26-yard line. What was supposed to be a heroic scramble by Ohio State’s quarterback to set up a possible game-winning field goal 2 ½ months ago on the road was, in fact, a disaster that has lingered.

As an Autzen Stadium field storming enveloped him and the rest of the Buckeyes, Howard had one of those “What have I just done?” looks on his face. 

Actually, it was not what he had done. It was what he didn’t do. Howard used all six seconds remaining with his desperation scramble. The Buckeyes left the field with a remaining timeout in their hip pocket and their first loss of the season, 32-31, that to this point has defined each program’s season. 

The quarterback who couldn’t sit down in time still can’t let go of that moment. 

“I still have nightmares about that play,” Howard said in the lead-up to Wednesday’s Rose Bowl College Football Playoff quarterfinal rematch against the Ducks. “I still run it over in my head. ‘What could I have done better?'”

In this new win-or-go-home expanded playoff, it’s actually all about what you can do next. Everything is about looking forward. But for Howard — and for some of his Buckeyes teammates — the loss has become somewhat of an examination of their football souls.

They’re still in the process of processing that loss. 

What could everyone in scarlet and gray have done better in the game that changed the Big Ten and the season? The result, eventually, was the difference in Oregon winning the league in its first Big Ten season. It was also the closest challenge the Ducks have gotten to their undefeated season and what is now the No. 1 seed in the CFP. 

The seamless transition from the Pac-12 to…

Source link : https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/still-haunted-by-nightmares-ohio-state-will-howard-ready-for-second-crack-at-oregon-in-rose-bowl-rematch/

Author : Dennis Dodd

Publish date : 2024-12-30 23:55:00

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