Tag: Desmond Howard

Ohio State football put on blast by Desmond Howard

Ohio State football ranks as the fourth-best team in the country, but Desmond Howard is far from singing their praises.

It would be difficult to argue that Ohio State football hasn’t been impressive thsi season. That said, has there been a few bumps in he road? The answer would be yes. Losing to Oregon was a tough blow, and the Buckeyes didn’t really figure it out following their bye week against Nebraska.

Neither of those helped their cause, but the Buckeyes season is going to be defined by far more than that. Saturday will be a huge test for them as they head to Beaver Stadium to face the No. 3-ranked Penn State Nittany Lions.

Ahead of that, Desmond Howard gave his thoughts about the “false impression of how great” Ohio State is. He did not hold back when suggesting how they feel about themselves, especially after the NIL reports from this offseason.

The Buckeyes can silence many of their unbelievers Saturday against the Nittany Lions, and they might save their season with a win as a loss would likely be detrimental to them potentially cracking even the 12-team playoff with both Michigan and Indiana still on the horizon.

College GameDay Crew picks Texas A&M vs. LSU

ESPN’s College GameDay crew has predicted the winner of Texas A&M vs. LSU

No. 14 Texas A&M’s Week 9 home matchup vs. 8th-ranked LSU looms large. The primetime showdown has postseason implications, and the winner will be atop the SEC standings with sole possession of first place.

Both teams are 6-1 and undefeated in SEC play, surprising much of the media after falling in their season openers, including Texas A&M’s disappointing loss to Notre Dame to start off the Mike Elko coaching era.

However, it’s been smooth sailing ever since. Still, even though the Aggies are at home and have also won six consecutive games, ESPN’s College GameDay crew, which included Desmond Howard, Nick Saban, Pat McAfee, Lee Corso, Kirk Herbstreit, and guest picker Kyle Schwarber, were less than confident in the Aggies chances to protect home field.

From left to right, Howard, Saban, and McAffee picked LSU to win the game, claiming the Tigers have momentum after blowing out Arkansas 34-10 last Saturday. However, Philadelphia Phillies star outfielder Kyle Schwarber picked the Aggies due to the impact from the 12th Man, while Corso followed suit.

Herbstreit, who is calling the game, could not make a pick but seems more confident in the Tigers’ ability to steal a road victory on Saturday night.

Texas A&M will host LSU at home on Saturday, Oct. 26th, at 6:30 p.m. CT. The game will air on ABC.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes, and opinions. Follow Cameron on Twitter: @CameronOhnysty.

Desmond Howard takes shot at Ohio State football early-season schedule

Ohio State football didn’t have a difficult first month of the season, and Desmond Howard isn’t letting people forget that.

Ohio State football’s early-season schedule drew a ton of criticism from numerous personalities, and most still are harping on how the Buckeyes have yet to play a Power 5 opponent.

That will change Saturday as they head up to East Lansing to face conference opponent Michigan State.

However, former Michigan wide receiver and current college football personality Desmond Howard isn’t letting the public forget about the Buckeyes first month.

‘The trenches, watch that battle in the trenches. I’m not sure – I’m gonna have to ask Pete [Thamel] later on because Michigan State has lost at least three wide receivers early in the season. I don’t know who’s coming back. … But Ohio State, finally, welcome to the 2024 college football season up in East Lansing against Sparty,” Howard said on College Football Live via On3’s Nick Schultz.

The Spartans aren’t exactly a team expected to give Ohio State hiccups. They are 3-1 on the season but are coming off a 23-19 road loss to Boston College. Michigan State has exceeded expectations when an underdog. It is 1-1 as an underdog and has covered the spread in both games as an underdog.

The Spartans haven’t beaten the Buckeyes since 2015 though, dropping eight straight games. Ohio State beat Michigan State 49-20 the last time both teams were in East Lansing (2022).

With conference games starting to heat up, the Buckeyes schedule will start to either prove the doubters right or wrong, especially with Iowa on October 5 and Oregon the week after.

Ohio State still has Oregon, Penn State and Michigan on the schedule, all currently within the top 15.

ESPN’s College GameDay makes picks for Nebraska vs. Colorado

Desmond Howard picked against Nebraska on Saturday

Predictions are beginning to roll in for the Nebraska Cornhuskers –Colorado Buffaloes game Saturday evening. The College Gameday crew shared their picks prior to the Michigan Wolverines-Texas Longhorns match-up.

Every analyst picked Nebraska to win the contest, with the exception of one. Desmond Howard was the only analyst on the panel to choose Colorado over Nebraska.

The fan’s vote tilted in Nebraska’s favor as well. 63% of fans polled believe Nebraska will be victorious over the Buffaloes.

Howard has a long-standing history with Nebraska. One of his more famous comments came during the pandemic year in 2020 when he said the Big Ten conference should demand an apology from Nebraska after the school’s leadership suggested that the Cornhuskers would find a way to play football that season after the Big Ten initially suspended play.

Howard seems to have a constant bone to pick when it comes to Nebraska. The trend certainly continued on Saturday afternoon.

Contact/Follow us @CornhuskersWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Nebraska news, notes, and opinions.

Desmond Howard shares his ‘problem’ with Dabo Swinney’s transfer portal approach

Howard discusses Dabo Swinney and the transfer portal.

ESPN’s Desmond Howard recently shared his thoughts on why Clemson may no longer be at the level it once was under Dabo Swinney. During an appearance on ESPN’s Get Up, Howard discussed Swinney’s approach to player development, suggesting that Clemson’s refusal to engage with the transfer portal is impacting the program’s competitiveness.

Howard specifically highlighted Clemson’s struggles in bringing out the best in their highly ranked recruits, such as starting quarterback Cade Klubnik. “You look at Cade Klubnik, this is his third year in the program, his second year under OC Garrett Riley. You would expect Cade Klubnik, a guy who they recruited, five-star, to at least by year three show vast improvement,” Howard said. He added that while many programs look to the portal to patch up holes in their roster, Clemson has stayed away from it entirely.

The lack of portal activity has drawn scrutiny, as Clemson is one of only four FBS programs that have not added any transfers this season, alongside Army, Navy, and Air Force. Howard believes that relying solely on internal development isn’t enough, especially when other top-tier programs, like Georgia, regularly reload with proven talent from the portal. “When you bring in this talent of this caliber and we don’t see the progress, the development, then that’s the problem that I have,” Howard explained.

Clemson’s 34-3 loss to No. 1 Georgia in the season opener further fueled doubts about the program’s trajectory. The game marked Clemson’s lowest scoring output since Swinney became head coach in 2008, raising concerns about whether the Tigers can keep up with the nation’s elite. Howard remarked, “When you’re going up against a team like a Georgia, who’s going to be the yardstick by which your team, which your players are measured, then at that point we can see just how well you’ve developed your talent.”

Howard also noted that Swinney’s philosophy of developing homegrown talent is admirable, but when the results fall short against the best teams, it raises larger questions about Clemson’s future as a national contender.

Desmond Howard picks Southern Miss to cover against Kentucky on College GameDay

Analyst Desmond Howard picks Southern Miss to cover the spread versus Kentucky on College Gameday.

The Kentucky football season has finally arrived, and the Wildcats will play Southern Miss Saturday night at 7:45. The Wildcats are big favorites in the game, and are expected to start the 2024 season with a win.

One College Gameday analyst believes, however, that it won’t be quite as big a blowout as expected. When the crew made their “Super Dog” picks, Desmond Howard pointed to this game.

Related: Top 100 players in Kentucky football history: 100-81

Kentucky was listed as a 27-point favorite coming into the day. The Wildcats are a talented SEC team, with loads of veteran leadership and potential award winners.

Southern Miss is coming off a season where they finished 3 – 9, which was second worst in the Sun Belt conference. They will look to improve on that with new quarterback Tate Rodemaker.

This should be a win for the Wildcats. They certainly have the ability to win big, but can they get the blowout? Howard doesn’t think so, but we’ll find out Saturday night.

ESPN’s College GameDay predict winner of Texas A&M vs. Notre Dame

The College GameDay hosts are high on the Aggies ahead of Saturday’s showdown

Just hours before Texas A&M hosts the No. 7 Notre Dame Fighting Irish on Saturday night, ESPN’s College Gameday descended on College Station, Texas, bringing the usual pre-game fun that offers plenty of entertainment for the earlier weekend risers who tune in.

As the festivities came to a close, the GameDay hosts, including Rece Davis, Desmond Howard, Pat McAfee, Nick Saban, Lee Corso, and Kirk Herbstreit, joined guest picker Johnny Manziel to select every marquee game on the week 1 schedule, culminating in Saturday’s prime-time showdown.

While the predictions throughout the week have favored the Aggies due to the effect that Kyle Field and the 12th Man present, especially in night games, Notre Dame’s veteran defense littered with preseason All-Americans will be challenging for A&M’s offense under new OC Collin Klein.

However, Texas A&M’s deep D-line, led by former Purdue defensive end Nic Scourton, has a chance to be elite. It will face a Notre Dame offensive line with just six combined starts between all five starters.

Well, Howard, Saban, Manziel, and Pat McAfee all predicted that Texas A&M would come out victorious, but to avoid the GameDay curse, Lee Corso, in his usual fashion, trotted out in a leprechaun costume, picking the Fighting Irish to escape with a win.

https://twitter.com/collegegameday/status/1829914923138171150?s=61&t=Lugch2Z21nuLw29NN_3uwA

No. 20 Texas A&M will host No. 7 Notre Dame on Saturday, August 31, at 6:30 p.m. CT, and the game will air on ABC.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes, and opinions. Follow Cameron on Twitter: @CameronOhnysty.

Desmond Howard answers what a win over Texas A&M would mean for Notre Dame

It’s an odd day when we agree with Howard

Although there is a built-in dislike for former Michigan player turned college football analyst [autotag]Desmond Howard[/autotag], he finally has a rationale take on Notre Dame football.

When asked on ESPN’s show Get Up, he agreed with Mike Greenberg’s assessment that if the Irish defeat Texas A&M this weekend, that you can “write them in ink in the College Football Playoff.”

Howard mentions that Florida State might not be as much of a game, while Georgia Tech is trending up. There is no mention of the finale against USC, and like others before him, the fact that Notre Dame doesn’t have to play in a conference title game is an advantage.

It’s not often that anyone in Irish Nation agrees with Howard, but today is one of those days.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on X (Formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes and opinions.

Follow Mike on X: @MikeFChen

Pair of ESPN College GameDay hosts pick Oregon to win championship

ESPN’s Desmond Howard and Kirk Herbstreit likes Oregon’s chances in this year’s college football playoff

ESPN College Gameday didn’t wait until Week 1 to make their national championship picks known.

In their Week 0 program and season premiere, the College Gameday crew rolled out their picks for conference champions and the eventual national champions. To no one’s surprise, the Oregon Ducks made everyone’s playoff bracket. However, in a bit of a shocker, two of the analysts have Oregon not only making the title game but winning the entire thing.

Michigan alum and Heisman Trophy winner Desmond Howard has the Ducks defeating Georgia to win the national championship. It would be a nice feather in Dan Lanning’s cap to give Oregon its first title, but beating his former team while doing it would just be the cherry on top.

Herbstreit also picked the Ducks to win it all, but he had Ohio State winning the Big Ten. In this scenario, Oregon would have to play a first-round contest at Autzen on its way to the title. Herbsteit’s bracket had the Ducks hosting Boise State in that first game before facing Utah in the quarterfinals. He also had the Ducks defeating the Bulldogs out of the SEC in the championship game.

Oregon begins the season as the No. 3 team in the country in both the coaches poll and the Associated Press poll.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

J.J. McCarthy speaks at University of Michigan Spring Commencement

The former Michigan Wolverine made his way back to Ann Arbor to be a part of a rotation of speeches that included other alumni.

J.J. McCarthy returned to campus on Saturday for a special event. The former Michigan Wolverine returned to Ann Arbor to participate in a rotation of speeches that included other alumni. He, Desmond Howard, and Blake Corum delivered speeches at the University of Michigan’s Spring Commencement ceremony.

McCarthy, who studied in the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, majoring in General Studies, did not graduate on Saturday. The now Minnesota Viking, however, didn’t hesitate to motivate his former classmates to look toward their futures.

Corum and Howard also delivered great speeches that reminded the graduating class of how they have the world at their fingertips. The entire rotation of speeches can be found on the University of Michigan’s YouTube channel.

J.J. McCarthy’s next step is attending Rookie Minicamp with his fellow draftees from May 10 to May 12. From there, the work begins to become the franchise quarterback the team is counting on him to become.