New Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Will Howard is among the favorites for the Heisman Trophy this season, but former Ohio State coach Urban Meyer certainly does not seem bullish on his chances.
During a recent appearance on The Triple Option podcast with Mark Ingram and Rob Stone, Urban Meyer had a pretty brutal message for Will Howard about his Heisman Trophy chances simply because he isn’t all that convinced he’ll have the opportunity to put up big numbers on the ground.
“You need more than pretty good though Mark and that’s the only concern is they have the two first-rounders at tailback, they have an incredible group of receivers. I’m just not sure,” Meyer said. “I think he’s a great player and I think he’s gonna run one of the top offenses of the country. But when you get to November, you have to have the stats.”
Meyer just does not seem to think that Howard will be able to emerge as a standout player in the team’s offense enough to earn enough Heisman Trophy votes.
“I’ve been down that road before and at times you actually feel guilty because you didn’t give the guy enough carries. It was Zeke Elliot or you had J.T. [Barrett], just didn’t give him enough touchdowns. Because at the end of the day yes, you have to be part of a great team. But you have to have the stats and that’s my concern about Will Howard,” Meyer explained.
“I just don’t see him having that 40 touchdown passing season. I think he’ll be very good runner for Ohio State, but not enough statistically to put him in the Heisman.”
We’ll have to see whether or not he’ll Howard can prove him wrong.
