Kirk Herbstreit Makes Painful Admission About Mental Health, Weeks After Being Targeted by OSU Fans

You either love Kirk Herbstreit. Or you hate him. But if you’re an Ohio State fan, the only word you would probably use to describe your bubbling emotion is ‘loathe’. As a Buckeyes alum who once turned heads as a signal caller back in the early 90s, the common opinion slowly found its way to disdain, when Herbstreit started channeling his inner critic—and evidently he’s never been apologetic about it. However, even the most stoic of figures can feel overwhelmed. And looks like the 55-year-old is no stranger to that either.

Truth be told, his recent admission might come as a surprise to many. Mostly because Herbstreit has never been one to fear the “lunatic fringe”—a term he coined for Bucs fans who are seemingly overly critical, irrational, and demanding of their coach Ryan Day. At one point, he even suggested that the team avoid playing home games altogether to avoid the boos, and suggested how fans hate him just because he’s “fair” and “objective”. Even when him and his family were getting death threats, the sportscaster had answered back pointedly, “The lunatic fringe at Ohio State is as powerful as anywhere in the country. It used to be 8-10 [percent of the fanbase]. I think it’s grown now to about 15-20….” But behind the scenes, he was just a regular man who could only take so much of the hate.

When Herbstreit was not the confident broadcaster pissing off fans on camera, he was just a family man who feared what fans could actually do. The result? It began with a family move from Columbus, Ohio to Nashville, Tennessee in 2011. Talking about the mental stress, Herbstreit had said, “I just can’t do this anymore. I really can’t keep going like this. Eighty to ninety percent of the Ohio State fans are great. It’s the vocal minority that make it rough. They probably represent only five to 10 percent of the fan base, but they are relentless.” He divulged more on April 30. During a book launch event for his memoir ‘Out of the Pocket’, a spectator asked him how he manages his mental health amid his busy schedule. To this, the veteran responded that he uses “prayer”, “faith,“ and “forgiveness” to face those everyday trolls.

“For me, it’s my faith. You know, I get tested a lot… So my answer is, a lot of times, delete the app. That’s not healthy, right? That’s like putting a Band-Aid on something. So, I’ve just found a daily devotional prayer, and really trying to connect helps me.”

“Then just being having very honest conversations with family and friends, and opening up. I’m a guy that likes to have conversations. I open my heart up with the right people, and I find that to be very helpful as well,” he further said.

Things haven’t been too great in his personal life either. Just recently, the announcer lost his favorite dog, Ben, which also took a toll on his mental health. His wife was also diagnosed with cancer, and his son Zak had heart failure two years ago.

So, balancing these personal challenges and dealing with online criticism is a tough task, and even after that, Kirk never fails to amaze and entertain us with his sleek, edgy, and analytical insights from the press box.

Last season, when Ryan Day’s loss against Michigan led to him and his family getting all kinds of threats on social media, Kirk didn’t hold back. Most probably, that is going to be the case in the foreseeable future, too. But there’s are some allegations that the veteran doesn’t want for himself…

Kirk Herbstreit clears his stance after accusations of ‘SEC bias’

After Ohio State won the national title, Kirk certainly was impressed and visibly emotional. But after that game, Kirk got himself in muddy waters after he berated the selection committee on Alabama, Ole Miss, and South Carolina for missing the playoffs over programs like SMU. The announcer was accused of SEC bias and had to face some of the harshest criticisms after his statement. Herbstreit later clarified his stance.

“Let me straighten the record on one last thing. ESPN loves the SEC so much that we could not have paid for a better Final Four with Notre Dame, Ohio State, Penn State, and Texas. If you’re asking us who we would want, we’ll take Ohio State every year, Notre Dame every…like this is a ratings bonanza.” Well, the clarification wasn’t without its own skepticism, as the damage seemed to have been done.

People pointed towards the falling ratings of the CFB national championship final and how even Ohio State vs. Notre Dame couldn’t save the falling ratings. This was true to an extent, too, as we saw the TV viewership decline, although the total number was still close to 22 million viewers in the final. But compared to last year, there was a 12% drop in total viewership (per ESPN). All in all, Kirk has found a way to cope with critics and trolls, and we would hope that the announcer continues to keep us entertained without any hiccups.