Should The Ohio State Buckeyes Be Concerned About Will Howard After Oregon Loss?

Is it time for Ohio State Buckeyes' fans to hit the panic button on quarterback Will Howard after his late-game blunder?

Oct 12, 2024; Eugene, Oregon, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Will Howard (18) walks off the field after losing 32-31 to Oregon Ducks during the NCAA football game at Autzen Stadium. / Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

While the Ohio State Buckeyes still hold a clear-cut path to the 2024 College Football Playoffs, the concerns of the team are now falling in the hands of quarterback Will Howard.

The former Kansas State quarterback put up solid numbers prior to the Buckeyes' Week 7 battle against Oregon, throwing for over 1,240 yards and 12 touchdowns while maintaining an average QBR of 83.3 through five games. Howard was also a threat on the ground, rushing for a touchdown in four-straight games before battling the Ducks.

Even when looking at Howard's stats against Oregon, he threw for 326 yards with two touchdowns and one rushing touchdown. While the stat sheet passes the eye test, it is Howard's late-game management that is concerning to many Buckeyes' fans.

After Ohio State received the ball back with less than two minutes on the clock in the fourth quarter, the Buckeyes' veteran passer needed to get his team in field goal position to win the contest. Despite the challenge, Howard completed five passes for 56 yards while picking up a pass interference call to put his offense in field goal range.

With six seconds left and one timeout on Oregon's 38 yard line, Howard did the unthinkable: he ran the ball.

If the play call was a designed run, chances are it would have been a clever move to give his kicker more room to knock in the field goal. But Howard originally looked for wideout Brandon Inniss and opted to not throw it, thus causing him to run the ball and not calling the timeout in time.

IT'S OVER. 🦆

NO. 3 OREGON TOPPLES NO. 2 OHIO STATE IN EUGENE. WHAT A GAME. pic.twitter.com/pzrROxapap

— NBC Sports (@NBCSports) October 13, 2024

Howard fits offensive coordinator Chip Kelly's system, and he's looked efficient through six games. But the main reason why head coach Ryan Day went after the fifth-year quarterback was to find a replacement for former Buckeye Kyle McCord who could also excel in crunch time. In his first chance to prove himself, Howard was unable to lead his squad to a victory.

It's clear that Howard can be a great game-manager for Ohio State's high-powered offense. But he will need to prove that he can handle big moments against Penn State and Michigan in order for the Buckeyes to be true title contenders this season.