Will Howard is in his first year at Ohio State after playing 4 years at Kansas State where he set multiple school records and led the Wildcats to a PAC-12 championship win in 2022. Before committing to Kansas State he was a 3-star recruit from Downingtown, Pennsylvania who was ranked as the 13th best pro-style QB in the class of 2020 by 247 Sports.
In 2023, Howard’s final season at Kansas State, Howard threw for 2,643 yards, 24 touchdowns and 10 interceptions while completing 61.3% of his passes.
He led the Wildcats to an 8-4 record and a bowl appearance which he sat out of after entering the transfer portal. Howard entered the transfer portal with a year of eligibility remaining on November 27th, 2023 and committed to the Buckeyes on January 4th, 2024.
Howard is now a 5th-year senior at the helm of one of the best teams in the country with hopes to bring them their first National Championship since 2014. Ohio State is hoping Will Howard can be the upgrade at QB that they need to get their loaded roster over the hump and win the first ever 12-team playoff.
Player Info
Name: Will Howard
Jersey: No. 18
Position: Quarterback
School: Ohio State University
Class: RS Senior
Height: 6-5
Weight: 242 lbs.
Will Howard’s Strengths
Will Howard’s biggest strength is his experience. As a 5th-year player who has 28 starts under his belt at Kansas State he has played a lot of football and seen a lot of defenses and situations.
Howard is a true master of an offense, at Kansas State and even early in his time at Ohio State it is clear he is very in tune with the offense and the game plan. Howard diagnoses coverages and advantageous matchups pre snap and gets the ball out quickly and on time in quick game pass situations.
He’s a talented rhythm thrower and receivers can rely on the ball being in he right spot at the right time on quick, shorter developing routes. Howard is always aware of his check downs and stays cool under pressure.
Howard is able to make plays while on the move because of his ability to keep his eyes down field. Howard is accurate on the run as well whether he’s escaping pressure or in designed roll outs.
Howard also has great play action ability and it is noticeable that his ball fakes are polished and he hides the ball well, even when faking a handoff or a toss he is able to keep his eyes on the defense to trigger quick after carrying out a fake.
Howard has great NFL size at 6-5, 242 which allows him to break sacks and get hard yards in short yardage situation. As a runner Howard has good straight line speed and athleticism which definitely makes him a threat on QB draws or option plays.
Will Howard’s Weaknesses
Will Howard’s weaknesses largely come from his physical limitations. Howard doesn’t have a huge arm and lacks some velocity on his throws. Howard isn’t a great horizontal athlete, his stop-start ability is poor and he’s not going to make anyone miss as a ball carrier.
As a passer Howard’s accuracy wavers on intermediate throws and when he’s forced to make reads on longer developing pass plays, his decision making can be shaky.
Howard’s biggest question mark as a prospect is his ability to take over a game as a passer and lead a team to a hard win when the game plan isn’t working perfectly and he needs to use his talent to whip the ball around the field and this year at Ohio State, playing for a National Championship, will tell us a lot.
Draft Projection
Currently, I project Will Howard to be a Day 3 pick to a team looking for a consistent, reliable backup Quarterback to fill in and run an offense smoothly if their starter were to go down.
Howard is a high floor, low ceiling prospect and will more than likely find a role as a consistent backup QB that remains on a roster long term and provides knowledge and security for a QB room.
With a good season he could raise his stock slightly but it seems like his evaluation and draft range is pretty set and will remain consistent until draft day in April.
