Will Howard Says Kansas State Setbacks Helped Him Overcome Adversity

There's one characteristic that everyone is loving about Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Will Howard.

His ability to bounce back from difficult situations. Howard's journey to his national title featured a heartbreaking game-losing slide against Oregon and a rough loss to the rival Michigan Wolverines.

But he learned to deal with adversity long before then. Howard sat down with Steelers legend Ben Roethlisberger to unveil his toughest moments with his former Kansas State Wildcats.

"Something I like to hang my hat on is my ability to deal with adversity," Howard said on Footbahlin with Ben Roethlisberger Tuesday afternoon. "I think in my career at K-State and then at Ohio State, I've seen pretty much every situation a quarterback can see. I started off as a backup. I got thrown in as a true freshman, didn't know what the hell I was doing. I got benched. I've been a third-string. I've been the starter coming in and winning a championship. I've came in and had a guy split time with me. I've done everything, you know? And I've learned a lot."

He said these lessons poured into his time at Ohio State, where he learned to conquer challenges on even bigger collegiate stages.

"If I didn't go through a lot of those things at K-State, and even early on at Ohio State, I don't know how I would've done after throwing my first pass against Penn State," Howard said.

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Jayden Armant is a graduate of the Howard University School of Communications and a contributor to Kansas State Wildcats on SI. He can be reached at jaydenshome14@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @jaydenarmant.