The football world is indeed small. The Pittsburgh Steelers selected Ohio State QB Will Howard in the sixth round of the 2025 NFL Draft. He’s no stranger to the Keystone State as he’s a Pennsylvania native. But it’s not only the territory that will be familiar to him. The Steelers drafted his Ohio State teammate Jack Sawyer in the fourth round as well.
Oh, and the quarterback room in Pittsburgh will have a familiar face for Howard. QB Skylar Thompson was Howard’s teammate at Kansas State, the school Howard played for before transferring to Ohio State.
“This football world is crazy,” Howard said on his media conference call per a transcript provided by the Steelers. “I can’t wait to get back with my guy. Me and him were so close, and he was such a great mentor for me… And then obviously, Jack and I are about as close as two guys could be… I’m so glad that Captain Jack and I are going to Pittsburgh together.”
Will Howard spent four seasons with the Wildcats. Two of those years coincided with Skylar Thompson’s final two years at Kansas State. Thompson battled injuries during both of those seasons, including missing all but three starts of the 2020 season. But even injuries didn’t stop Thompson from coming back in 2021 and leading the Wildcats to a win in the TaxAct Texas Bowl, where he was named MVP of the game.
Howard obviously looked up to Thompson during their two years together, calling him “a great mentor.” Even though Thompson missed most of 2020 with that injury, he still was invested in helping Howard along. Perhaps that will continue in Pittsburgh.
And there is no doubt that Howard is hoping to celebrate more big plays and big victories with Sawyer.
Hey siri…PLAY RENEGADE! @whoward_ | @jacksawyer33 pic.twitter.com/oUDSPfybPG
— Ohio State Football (@OhioStateFB) April 26, 2025
Chances are, Will Howard had hoped he would go higher than the sixth round. There are fewer expectations, but there is also less forgiveness when you’re a late-round pick. But thankfully for him, he’s going to have some very friendly faces in Pittsburgh to kickstart this next stage of his football journey. And one of them will even be in quarterback meetings with him.
