Former Ohio State quarterback Will Howard told The Athletic that he made more money in his final college football season, when the Buckeyes made a national championship run, than he did as an NFL rookie with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Howard disclosed details of his NIL deal, saying it included an apartment, a Ford Bronco and money totaling seven figures.
“You can create generational wealth now, and it doesn’t have to start in the NFL,” Howard told The Athletic.
Howard was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the sixth round of the 2025 NFL Draft at pick No. 185. Howard’s four-year rookie contract is worth around $1.1 million annually.
In the NFL, players are paid as W-2 employees with taxes already deducted from their deal. College students making money from NIL collectives, on the other hand, are treated as independent contractors, required to fill out a Form 1099 and report their own taxes.
Howard told The Athletic that he never signed an NIL deal through Kansas State’s collective but did sign small deals with businesses in the community.
“Everything I did was on my own. They kind of took advantage of me and got me for cheap, so I decided to go somewhere else and make a little money,” Howard told The Athletic. “It’s different when you go to a school, and you’re the guy getting money. It’s amazing how different you’re treated. It was the best decision I ever made.”
Howard played for Kansas State for four seasons before transferring to Ohio State, where he led the Buckeyes to a national championship victory over Notre Dame.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Will Howard’s 7-figure Ohio State NIL deal paid more than NFL contract
Reporting by Dan Aulbach, Columbus Dispatch / The Columbus Dispatch
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