The Ohio State Buckeyes don't hold it against Joe Burrow in the slightest that he transferred to the LSU Tigers and won a national championship in Baton Rouge instead of in his home state. Ryan Day recently clarified that he never said Burrow had lost the QB competition, but simply insinuated that he was behind during 2018 spring practice.
While Day was covering his own tracks, since many hold letting Burrow go against him, and then-head coach Urban Meyer, the lesson of his overall message on Burrow is clear: he, and the Ohio State University, still value the Athens, Ohio, native as a member of the Scarlet and Gray family.
Per Day on the "Not Just Football" podcast with legendary Buckeye and Pittsburgh Steeler Cam Heyward, "So, Joe, first off, is extremely special in a lot of areas. He's extremely competitive. I say to this day, if any of those guys want to get into a three-point competition or a tire pull with coach Mick, they're going to lose to Joe Burrow. I said it all the time. Joe just, he had that special way about him ... "When he decided this is what he wanted to do, I helped him. We talked Cincinnati and some of the other schools, and obviously, LSU in the end was it."
"I remember when we played in '18, it was actually the third game that I was the (interim head coach), we played TCU in Jerry (World). And LSU was playing, I forget who they were playing. I'm pretty sure that was what it was. They were showing Joe's game on the Jumbotron, and everybody in that place who was a Buckeye was cheering for him. And to this day, he'll come back and lift with us. And so, his parents are great. It was just one of those situations that we were all happy for him, but we hate to see him leave, obviously."
Joe Burrow made a profound impact on the state of Ohio even while at LSU and helps out in a big way with Bengals
Burrow's Heisman speech in 2019 brought over $650,000 in donations to his hometown, Athens County, by describing the impoverished state many children were living in there. In addition, the Joe Burrow Foundation recently provided meals to 50,000 meals to families in need. That was nearly double the output from 2024 (30,000).
When it comes to helping out his community, Burrow was able to do it while on the Tigers and has been able to ramp up his support via a successful career with the Cincinnati Bengals. That it came pre-NIL speaks volumes.
Athens has never seen such an impactful person. Why wouldn't Burrow be welcomed at the Buckeye State's flagship university, where he began his collegiate career?
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