Emotions were high for everyone who had their team play in the competition college football national championship on Monday night, even on the ESPN broadcast team.
Kirk Herbstreit, who played quarterback at Ohio State from 1989 to 1993, couldn’t contain his emotions after seeing are Buckeyes win the school’s ninth national title, this time against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.
The 34-23 win for the Buckeyes led Herbstreit to reflect on this resilient group that made a dominant playoff run after a tough loss to their rival Michigan Wolverines.
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Kirk Herbstreit talks to the media during the 2025 CFP National Championship Media Day at the Georgia World Congress Center, Building A. (Kirby Lee-Imagn images)
As Herbstreit stood next to his play-by-play colleague Chris Fowler explaining how to overcome adversity, his eyes began to fill with tears, and he couldn’t hold them back.
“Oh, don’t start with me, man,” Herbstreit, who lived about an hour away from Ohio State in Centerville, told his ESPN colleague Scott Van Pelt during the postgame show. “I’m a bit emotional. I’m just excited for these guys.
“When I call these games, I’m incredibly objective. You know, I love all these Ohio State teams, but this team, because of what they’ve been through to get to this point, you’re just happy.”
OHIO STATE DEFEATS NOTRE DAME AND WINS COLLEGE FOOTBALL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
When the cameras returned to the broadcast booth, Herbstreit was seen taking a handkerchief from the camera to wipe away tears as Fowler continued to speak.
Fans know all too well what it feels like when their favorite teams win championships, because sometimes tears are shed. The same goes for alumni at schools.
Herbstreit played football for the Buckeyes after becoming the school’s first player to commit following the hiring of John Cooper as head coach in 1988. Herbstreit was the Ohio Gatorade Player of the Year as a senior at Centerville High School.
Analyst Kirk Herbstreit throws a football with fans on the set of ESPN’s College Game Day at the University of Texas prior to the Longhorns’ game against the Georgia Bulldogs in Austin, Texas, on October 19, 2024. (Sara Diggins/American-Statesman/USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)
He didn’t get any real action until his junior season, when he was used sparingly through 11 games. Herbstreit, however, was the starter during his senior season, when he threw for 1,904 yards with four touchdowns and six interceptions in eleven games.
Additionally, while Herbstreit discussed the adversity this team has faced this season, he also faced personal setbacks from a major loss in his life.
Herbstreit’s beloved golden retriever, Ben, who was a consistent presence on ESPN’s “College GameDay,” was put down after his battle with cancer.
“This is really hard to write, but so many of you have loved and cared about Ben that I just wanted to let you know. We found out today that the cancer had spread throughout Ben’s organs and we can’t do anything anymore.” could do – we had to let him know he’s going,” Herbstreit wrote in November.
On the first “College Gameday” after the difficult decision to take Ben down, Herbstreit couldn’t even speak as emotions flooded him as he talked about his beloved companion.
Ben’s brother, Peter, has tagged along with Herbstreit as he continues to travel around the country with one of his dogs by his side.
ESPN commentator Kirk Herbstreit before the CFP National Championship college football game between the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Ohio State Buckeyes at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. (Kirby Lee-Imagn images)
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There have been highs and lows for Herbstreit this college football season, and it ends with tears of joy.
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