Chase Herbstreit has never been one to hide his Ohio State fandom.
While his father Kirk has a duty to be objective as an analyst for ESPN, his son Chase has often been seen alongside him wearing Ohio State gear, even during TV appearances and on the set of College GameDay. During an interview with Eleven Warriors in December 2020, Kirk described Chase as an “absolute brainwashed Buckeye.”
A year-and-a-half later, not much has changed – even though Chase is now beginning the process of pursuing a college football career of his own.
The youngest Herbstreit has dreamed of playing for the Buckeyes since he was a little kid, and that remains his steadfast goal entering his sophomore year at St. Xavier High School.
“It's the only option,” Chase Herbstreit said when asked about his aspiration to play at Ohio State. “That's all I care about. Just going here and if I could win a national championship here, that would just mean the world … I’m open to anything, but I really want to go here.”
Chase’s love of Ohio State was on display last month, when he was in Columbus for two of OSU’s one-day camps. After going through a day of drills with Kirk watching from the sideline on June 14, the teenage Herbstreit enjoyed it so much that he returned for Ohio State’s final camp of the summer just one week later.
“It was a great experience last time, so I had to come back again,” Chase Herbstreit said after the second camp. “It was so fun.”
At the second camp, Chase went through a throwing session led by Ryan Day alongside a select group of quarterbacks that included Ohio State commit Dylan Raiola and his younger brother Dayton, highly touted 2025 prospect Colin Hurley, rising 2024 prospect Trever Jackson and Ryan Day’s son RJ.
The younger Herbstreit enjoyed having the opportunity to work out with Raiola, saying it was “crazy just to see his arm talent.” And Chase embraces every opportunity he gets to spend time with Day, who he says is “kind of like a second dad to me.”
“I mean, he's a hero of mine,” Chase said of Day. "Him and my dad, they're both my heroes.”
Because he frequently accompanies his father on trips to Ohio State, Chase Herbstreit has known Day since Day became OSU’s offensive coordinator in 2017. Because of that, Chase says his conversations with Day are more often about life than they are about where he’ll play college football.
Ohio State’s 2018 game against Penn State was one of many Buckeyes games Chase has attended alongside his father over the years.
Right now, it’s too early to say whether Herbstreit will develop into an Ohio State-caliber prospect. He led St. Xavier’s freshman team in 2021, but will have to beat out two older quarterbacks who already have varsity experience to become the Bombers’ varsity starter this year.
Herbstreit’s family legacy, though, is reason enough for Day, Dennis and the Buckeyes to keep an eye on his development. Both his father and grandfather are former Ohio State captains; Kirk was the Buckeyes’ starting quarterback and team MVP in 1992 while Jim Herbstreit was a starting running back in 1960. Chase’s older brother, Zak, is entering his second year with the Buckeyes as a walk-on tight end.
All of his three older brothers have walked on at major college football programs – Tye is a walk-on wide receiver at Clemson, where Tye’s twin brother Jake also played before transferring to Ohio State (where he does not play football) – and Chase would consider any opportunity he can get to play for the Buckeyes.
“I just love Ohio State so much, I just want to play here so bad,” Chase said. “It would just mean the world to me.”
That said, Chase and Ohio State both still have plenty of time to let his high school career play out and see what he becomes as a prospect. For the time being, Chase’s focus is on trying to win St. Xavier’s starting job. It’s rare for a sophomore quarterback to start at St. X, but Chase is excited for the chance to compete for the job during preseason practices.
“I think that I can start,” Chase said. “I think I am good enough to do that. But I just got to do my best out there.”
Because of who his father is, Herbstreit garners far more attention than most high school quarterbacks who haven’t even played a varsity game yet. But Chase says he enjoys the extra attention he gets, and he feels fortunate for all the opportunities he’s had to attend games and meet college and professional football players and coaches alongside his dad.
Having a father who played quarterback at Ohio State has also helped Chase as he’s learned how to play the position while aspiring to eventually throw the ball for the Buckeyes himself.
“The main thing he's taught me is just the mental state and just like if you throw a pick, just get to the next play,” Chase said. “I think I have an advantage of just like the mental spot of the game and just like how pros who've done it before, how they react to situations.”
