It has been three decades since he won the Heisman Trophy at Michigan, but there’s still no love lost for Desmond Howard among Notre Dame fans.
Howard is in South Bend this weekend for ESPN’s College GameDay before Notre Dame-Ohio State on Saturday night. Early in the show, he earned a rocky reception from the fans in attendance.
The crowd gathered behind the stage in the shadow of “Touchdown Jesus” could be heard loudly chanting “Desmond sucks.”
“Here’s what happens: when you make a catch against a team 30 years ago that leads to a Heisman Trophy win, they don’t forget,” said Kirk Herbstreit. “That’s a sign of greatness.”
A mere two minutes into College GameDay, the Notre Dame crowd lets Desmond Howard know how they feel about him… pic.twitter.com/LN5djt8iBS
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) September 23, 2023
For those unfamiliar, Howard’s diving touchdown catch on 4th-and-1 against the Fighting Irish in 1991 sealed up a Michigan victory and spearheaded his Heisman campaign.
That game was in Ann Arbor, but the fans in South Bend certainly haven’t forgotten about it.
Ironically, despite the fierce rivalry between the Fighting Irish and Wolverines, there are probably a few Michigan fans rooting for ND tonight against Ohio State.
No. 9 Notre Dame and No. 6 Ohio State will kick off at 7:30 p.m. ET from Notre Dame Stadium on NBC.