Best of OSU: Dwayne Haskins is Ohio State’s best male athlete

Wyatt Crosher
Thu, 28 Mar 2019 03:16:36 +0000
Arts & Life, Best of OSU, News, best male athlete, Buckeyes, Columbus, Dwayne Haskins, Football, Heisman, NFL, ohio state, quarterback, season

Ohio State redshirt sophomore quarterback Dwayne Haskins (7) celebrates as he leaves the field following the Rose Bowl Game featuring Ohio State and Washington in Pasadena, Calif. on Jan. 1. Ohio State won 28-23. Credit: Casey Cascaldo | Photo Editor

Fourteen starts, 4,831 passing yards, 50 passing touchdowns and Heisman finalist. Now, Dwayne Haskins has been named the Best Male Athlete at Ohio State.

Haskins was the Buckeyes’ starting quarterback for only one season, and it became clear fast that he was one of the purest throwers this program has ever seen.

Sure, “athlete” might not be the word I would use to describe Haskins: He rushed for 108 yards in 79 attempts and ran a 5.04 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine.

But when it comes to talent displayed from any athlete in any sport Ohio State has to offer, Haskins has to be the first to come to mind.

Only three quarterbacks have ever thrown for more touchdowns in a single season in the history of college football. Zero Buckeyes have ever accounted for that many yards, or that many touchdowns, in any season in the program’s history.

Haskins followed up a 396-yard, six-touchdown performance in a throttling of Michigan with a 499-yard, five-touchdown performance in the Big Ten Championship against Northwestern.

The redshirt sophomore quarterback helped the Buckeyes score 62 points against their biggest rival than any Ohio State team before it.

Even in Ohio State’s darkest time, a 49-20 defeat at Purdue on Oct. 20, it was Haskins who tried to throw his way out of the deficit, finishing with 470 yards, which at the time was a program record.

Which he promptly broke with the the standout performance against Northwestern.

Haskins is now headed to the NFL, where he will likely become the third Ohio State quarterback to be drafted in the Top 10 and the first in 37 years.

In one season, Haskins led the Buckeyes to a 13-1 record, a Big Ten title and a win in the Rose Bowl.

In one season, Haskins broke nearly every passing record the program has to offer.

In one season, Dwayne Haskins became one of the greatest quarterbacks the Buckeyes have ever had, and for that, he is Ohio State’s best male athlete.