Kirk Herbstreit Reveals Heartwarming Reason He Teared Up After Ohio State National Title

The No. 8 seed Ohio State Buckeyes endured a lot throughout the season, and on Monday night, it all came full circle as they defeated the No. 7 seed Notre Dame Fighting Irish, 34-23, to become national champions. Following the game, the emotions got the best of ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit, who was calling the game alongside Chris Fowler.

Herbstreit’s son, Zak Herbstreit, is on the Ohio State team but was forced to medically retire after developing a heart condition two seasons ago. Despite this, Ohio State head coach Ryan Day, the rest of the coaching staff, and the players kept him involved. While many speculated about why Herbstreit broke down in the booth following the game, he had a clear reason for doing so, which he revealed on "The Pat McAfee Show" on Tuesday. 

"It was almost like a perfect storm for me. My son had heart failure two years ago, and they were talking about a heart replacement for a while. He had to medically retire, and I think the gratitude I have for Ryan Day putting his arms around Zak and keeping him involved—he was almost like a GA with what he was doing—and Ryan insisted on putting his arms around him, Chip Kelly, and all these guys." Herbstreit said. 

He added, "So, there was that side of it: looking down and seeing him in his jersey, after potentially facing a heart replacement. Then, you know, Ally, my wife, faced some stuff. It’s been a tough year for me behind the scenes. My wife got diagnosed with breast cancer, you know, Ben dies, It was just a lot of emotion, and when you do what we do, you endure. You do your job. I think what happened, when they won, I was so happy for Ryan Day and those players, from what they faced and everything they went through. It was almost like a relief, and it just got the best of me."