“I hear the pain”: Kirk Herbstreit opens up about Ryan Day & Will Howard’s struggles due to the backlash faced from Ohio State fans

ESPN Kirk Hersbstreit has had enough of Ohio State fans complaining about a team and coach that has carried them to the verge of playing a national championship game. Hersbstreit, a former Buckeyes quarterback, spoke Tuesday on On3's "Andy & Ari" podcast about how he feels about how fans have treated their team, especially OSU coach Ryan Day and quarterback Will Howard.

Here's what Hersbstreit said about his current relationship with the fans of his alma mater (Timestamp: 5:30):

“Couple of things, I’ve been doing this almost 30 years. My 29th year of somebody being upset. Ohio State fans, a portion of them, have always been upset with me. It’s not like, ‘Wow, what am I gonna do the Ohio State are upset?’

"I wasn’t even critical of Ohio State. I was critical of Ryan Day needing an armed guard 24/7 outside of his house. That’s what I was critical of. I was critical of some of the things they say to some of the players on social media.

"Here’s my problem. I talk to Will Howard. I talk to Ryan Day behind curtains. I hear the pain that they feel and they can’t say anything. I can. I’ll take the bullets.”

What did Kirk Herbstreit say about Ohio State fans?

Controversy arose recently when during the the fourth quarter of the first-round College Football Playoff game between Tennessee and Ohio State last month, the analyst had some less-than-complementary words about a section of the Buckeyes fandom.

When asked by Chris Fowler during the 47-17 Ohio State win, how this softened the blow of losing to Michigan during the regular season for the fandom, Kirk Herbstreit said:

“I can’t speak on behalf of the lunatic fringe. I’m not sure how they operate. The lunatic fringe at Ohio State is as powerful as anywhere in the country.”

When asked how big he thought the Ohio State fringe was, he said:

“It used to be 8-10 (percent). I think it’s grown now to about 15-20, so I don’t know. I’m sure they’ll be happy tonight — be fired up about what the Ohio State team did. But God forbid they lose to Oregon. They may want to fire him again.”

The veteran sportscaster went on to rant against his own network, alleging that "First Take" conspired to have Ryan Day fired. He seemed confident that Ohio State would continue to advance, and advance it did. The Buckeyes play Texas on Friday at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, in the Cotton Bowl.