Downingtown West High star quarterback Will Howard excelled on the gridiron in the Philadelphia area and was ranked the 13th best pro style quarterback of the 2020 senior class by 247Sports. His senior season was capped off by winning the Maxwell Football Club Pennsylvania Player of the Year Award, among other honors.
Tony Reid-Going to Downingtown West High, becoming the star QB and growing up outside of Philadelphia, I have to ask, are you a fan of all things Philly sports? What players did you admire most as a kid?
Will Howard-I have always been a huge Philly sports fan. The first guy who I was a huge fan of was Donovan McNabb. I was naming my toys after him. I had a little number 5 Eagles jersey. Pat (Waters) took me to a Brian Dawkins golf outing when I was home this summer and I got to meet him. It came full circle for me. I was looking up to him as a kid. I loved Brian Westbrook and all of those guys. There were a ton of them that were there I got to meet Dawkins. It was cool to meet those guys I grew up watching and idolizing.
TR– The image of you in the locker room smoking the cigars and holding the Dr. Pepper after the Big 12 championship game is already kind of a classic. Looking back just a few short weeks after the game what are your lasting memories from that night?
WH-That game was surreal. It was so much fun. That moment in the locker room was really cool but getting out on that field and to have the opportunity to even be in the game was a blessing to begin with. To win it and win it in that fashion was so cool. It’s surreal and a moment I will remember forever. Watching our defense make that stand on fourth down, in my head I was thinking we were going to have to go down and score and get two to win the game but they came up with a huge stop. We just had to go out and center the ball for our kicker, basically. I gave him a high five walking off. He was smiling. There was no doubt he was making that kick. I was looking down at the ground but there was no doubt. I knew he was going to make it.
The confetti was coming down, being there on the stage on the field and being here with my teammates, my guys, was incredible. I got to go over and give my mom a hug after the game. It’s a moment I will remember forever. It was like a movie. It was a storybook ending to the season but we have another opportunity to take on ‘Bama, so that will be super cool.
TR–You’ve been in the forefront and embracing the new NIL opportunities for college athletes. what made you get out in front of it and try and market, promote and build your brand?
WH-That is the name of game now, branding and making sure you are staying ahead of the game. We have been able to do that. Big credit to Pat (Waters) and Leslie (Gudel) for what they have been able to do for me. I met Leslie through the Maxwell Award foundation. I got to know her much better since high school. I have known Pat forever because I played with Ryan in high school and he is a good buddy of mine. There was that trust there. You have agents coming and there are a bunch of factors you have to look into when you are picking an agent. It was a no brainer for me because of the trust and how well I knew Pat and Leslie. I knew they wanted the best for me. We had a personal relationship. It’s cool still to be able to work with them. They did a really good job in getting me a website and getting ahead of the game.
It’s pretty advanced. I don’t think many other kids have websites, especially not the caliber of mine. I didn’t do any of that. That was all those guys. They did a really good job with it and I am lucky to have them. We started getting this rolling even before I blew up on the field. It was nice to have that already established when things started going the right way on the field. That’s the direction college sports is going. NIL and branding is so important and I have a really good team representing me.
TR- How are things gone for you online?
WH-That is a really nice part of all of this, Pat and Leslie said “focus on football, do your thing and we will take care of that side of it.” I am pretty hands off when it comes to the website. We got it set up outside of football season. We got merch out there. It wasn’t really killing it at first but we got some sales and having it already established when the season came around was big. Things started going right on the field and then people want to buy your merch and its right there. It’s easily accessible. Its super appealing to the eye on your phone, a computer and it’s so easy to navigate. The visual is awesome. I changed my (uniform) number so they were able to nicely Photoshop some pictures. I am lucky to be able to have a website like that.
TR–Being a sports card and memorabilia guy, when a player gets hot or has one good game fans are out looking for his stuff. To have that base and foundation in place to capture those sales and not miss opportunities is important at every level. Have you seen the results of you having product ready when the time is right?
WH-Oh, no doubt. It was big time to have it already established so that all I had to do was put it in my bio on Instagram and Twitter. People are coming through looking at it. People start reposting it and all of a sudden people are wearing it. I have a few shirts myself. I gave a few to my roommates and buddies and had them wear the stuff around. I feel kind of weird wearing my own merchandise. I give it to them and let them wear it and promote it. It’s cool because all of the guys that have merchandise lines bought each other’s stuff. I have Felix’s (Anudike) shirt. I have Deuce’s (Vaughn) shirt. Felix, after the West Virginia game, was wearing my shirt. We all like to have fun with it.
TR-You have some pretty heavy hitters working behind the scenes for you can you speak to what Leslie’s influence and Pat’s influence have done for you navigating this new world?
WH-Being able to have Leslie, who is huge in terms of social media, branding and marketing, she is always giving me tips on how to do interviews and handle the media. She was the media. She knows what they want to hear. Pat has represented a ton of big guys, Brian Dawkins and the list goes on, guys I used to look up to. It’s really cool to be able to have people with a ton of experience and a ton of connections in the game. Its makes it easy on me. I don’t have to do much. I just send them to Pat and Leslie and let them handle it. I am thankful for them.
TR– A big part of your message is goodwill, spreading positivity throughout the community and giving back in various ways. What inspired you to take such an active role as a college kid?
WH-I have always said that with the status you have as a college athlete, especially now that we won the Big 12, eyes are all on us. You use it in a positive way and impact people the best way you can. I am involved in Big Brothers and Big Sisters program. I have a little brother that I actually hung out with yesterday. We went and got food. I have a 13-year-old kid that I hang out with and am a role model for. We have fun. I take him to the pumpkin patch and take him bowling and do fun stuff. It’s a positive relationship and getting to know him and try to have a positive impact on his life.
Leslie ad Pat got me into the Be the Match, Get in the Game bone marrow drive out here. We had a huge turnout through the football team. We did a big drive at our student union. We had 400 people come and get swabbed to be on the bone marrow registry. One of my teammates, our kicker Chris Tennant, he is a match and is going to do a bone marrow transplant for a patient with leukemia. He is literally saving a life. One of my teammates was really into it when I brought it up in a meeting. He came up to afterwards and said his dad had his life saved from the program. It’s really cool to be able to make an impact. It may not mean much for us. All we have to do is go and show up and take pictures and shake hands but it makes the kids day. It makes a huge impact on our community and that means the world to me, more than a Big 12 Championship or a bowl game. It’s really cool what we can do off the field, too.
TR-As you grow and continue to excel on the field and off, what is the vision for your brand?
WH-I am just trying to grow it as much as I can. To have it established so early was huge. I have a really nice logo and merch and all of that stuff. I just want my image to be as positive and impactful as it can be on and off the field. I want to continue to make sure that my brand is focused on community service and serving others more than myself. I am so glad we have been able to have the success we’ve had on the field because that has helped me off the field. I am excited to continue to work with businesses in the area and back home, too. It’s crazy the doors that can be opened by playing a game I have loved since I was little kid. I want to continue to grow it and hopefully transfer it over to the NFL in a year or two. I am looking forward to it, for sure.
TR-The stigma in past generations has been that athletes can’t do all of this by themselves, that they need agents and other people to handle aspects of their business. Your generation is breaking down the barrier that athletes can’t do this and to have power and control with the people you choose to have around you, being so young and polished you are breaking that barrier down that athletes can’t do it themselves.
WH-We are trying to change that narrative. I can’t do all of this stuff alone. I do the little things I have to do here and there and they take care of the rest. It’s nice to have people that I know have my best interests in mind. It can be a sleazy business sometimes. When you have people you trust around you it makes it a lot easier.
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