O. J. Howard Speaks Highly Of Bama On Pat McAfee Show
On The Pat McAffee Show this week, member of the Super Bowl Champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers - and recurring guest - O. J. Howard joined Pat McAfee to provide an update on the injury that cut his 2020 season short and discuss how the now seven-time champion Tom Brady impacted the whole organization.
When asked about the culture Tom Brady brought in to Tampa Bay, Howard said, "You can feel it, man... As soon as he walked in the building, I was telling people like 'Yo, this feels like Alabama to me.' We're coming in with the mindset, we're focused, guys are ready to win, we're confident, we got talent, and I mean Tom just brings a level of confidence to everybody..."
After McAfee discussed the winning attitude at Bama, Howard said, "It's like the epitome of a 'football university.' I committed in 11th grade, I committed early. I got an offer in July [of 2011]... I was at the camp as a high schooler and someone pulled me and said, 'Hey man, you don't need to do the camp, coach Saban saw enough. Come upstairs, he wants to talk to you.' So I go up there with my parents and he offers me and before he can even get the word out of his mouth, I said 'I'll commit.'" With Howard's parents unsure of the quick decision, Howard recalls saying, "I'm coming here right now coach," to Saban at his office in the Mal Moore Athletics facility. Howard continued by saying, "At Bama, we're going against the best players every day, so it prepares you for the next level... Coach Saban treats everybody the same way and even the coaches get chewings."
Howard, a native of Prattville, Alabama, actually grew up an Auburn fan prior to committing to what he saw as a better path to the NFL. At The Capstone, Howard was a key part of three consecutive SEC Championships (2014, 2015, and 2016) and would be named the offensive MVP for the sole national championship he won in his Tide career.
Even though an Achilles injury kept him on the sideline for the Buccanneers' 2020-2021 season, Howard earned his first super bowl ring on February 7, 2021, at the age of 26.
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