ESPN College GameDay analyst Kirk Herbstreit may have ended his stint with the Ohio State Buckeyes 33 years ago, but his devotion to them is still evident today. Despite attending the Michigan Wolverines’ spring game to support his son, he made sure that nothing about his actions on that day betrayed his former program.

The former Buckeyes quarterback attended the Michigan football spring game to watch his son, Chase Herbstreit. And rather than donning Michigan merch to the game, he instead wore plain navy blue clothes. By doing so, he satisfied both parties: wearing the official colors of the Wolverines to satisfy his sons and the Wolverines fans and avoiding any Michigan-related gear to please the Buckeyes fans. 

Herbstreit did not just play for the Buckeyes; he lives and breathes the State of Ohio, as he was born in Hamilton, Ohio. Furthermore, the 56-year-old met his wife at OSU, where she was a cheerleader. Beyond the marital connection, there is also an OSU connection with his father. Jim Herbstreit, Kirk’s father, also played for the Buckeyes and was co-captain of the 1960 team before becoming an assistant coach. And, like his father, Kirk became the co-captain in 1992, his senior year, and the only year he was the starting quarterback.

However, Kirk Herbstreit’s relationship with Ohio State fans has been complicated, to say the least. That has more to do with his role as a broadcaster, in which OSU fans think he overcorrects by being harsher toward his alma mater to give the impression that he is objective. The criticism from OSU fans even led Herbstreit to move his family from Columbus to Nashville in 2011.

The latest edition of this back-and-forth with the Buckeye faithful came when Ryan Day was under fire for losing “The Game” during the 2024 season. Instead of pacifying the situation, Herbstreit called out the “lunatic fringe” among the fan base for death threats against the head coach’s family.

While Day got his redemption a month later, the whole fiasco added more fuel to an already-fraught relationship between Herbstreit and OSU fans. And at this moment, the last thing he needs is a picture of him donning a Michigan jersey.

Why did Kirk Herbstreit allow his son to join the Wolverines

One would have expected any athlete whose father and grandfather played for the same team to continue the legacy existing in his lineage. But that didn’t materialize for the third-generation Herbstreit. 

“What an opportunity for him,” Kirk Herbstreit said. “You know that this is a kid that grew up a lifelong Ohio State fan. Of all my kids, like he’s the guy that cried when they lose games, like he’s the Ohio State junkie. Ohio State did not really pursue him to the point of offering him a scholarship.”

While the Buckeyes did not go after the 6-foot-2, 185-pounder, the Wolverines did. But even at that, Kirk Herbstreit admitted that “it’s very different for our family because behind the scenes, it’s scarlet and grey our entire lives.”

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