For the first 184 picks of the 2025 NFL draft, Ohio State quarterback Will Howard watched from his family’s couch in Downingtown, his hometown and where he first made a name for himself as a football player.

Surrounded by family and his girlfriend, among others, Howard waited with his phone in hand to get that life-changing call. Also along for the ride was a crew from NFL Films. They had cameras follow Howard and three other draft prospects (Ashton Jeanty, North Philly’s Abdul Carter, and Mykel Williams) for this year’s Hey Rookie, Welcome to the NFL series, which gives a peek behind the curtain on each prospect’s journey in the weeks leading up to the draft, from training to preparing for the big weekend.

For Howard, the wait finally ended in the sixth round on Saturday, when the Pittsburgh Steelers selected him with the 185th overall pick, leading to a moment that has since gone viral on social media.

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“Please pick me, Pittsburgh. Please pick me, please!” Howard said with the NFL Films cameras rolling. Moments later, the call came in, with Steelers general manager Omar Khan on the other end of the line asking Howard one question: “You ready to be a Steeler?”

Howard replied: “[Expletive] right, man! Let’s go!”

Howard had tears streaming down his face, and shared long embraces with his mother, Maureen, and his father, Bob. Howard was so excited that he even flipped into his family’s backyard pool, followed by other family and friends, and eventually, his mother.

Following his dip in the pool, Howard shared a video message to Steelers fans on the team’s social media account.

“I had to trust in God and believe he had a plan for me and the right team was going to pick me. And I think 100% the right team picked me. I am a Pennsylvania kid,” Howard told Pittsburgh media after he was drafted. “The Steelers are an organization I have a lot of respect for a lot of years. Coming into this process I was hoping the Steelers would take me because I thought it was a great organization. I am so blessed.”

In the lead-up to the phone call, though, Maureen said her son was the subject of prank calls, which several draft prospects endured, including first-round tight end Tyler Warren, Shedeur Sanders, who was drafted ahead of Howard in the fifth round, and fellow local quarterback Kyle McCord, who was drafted by the Eagles.

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But the moment was “worth every second.”

“The cliché of, ‘It’s not when, it’s where,’ is so true, because [the Steelers] was probably his top choice, both him and his agent knew that this was just a great landing spot,” Maureen said on Tuesday. “They’ve loved Will throughout the whole process. He’s loved them. And I just think it’s a great fit in so many ways for him, as a player, as a person, the team, the culture.”

When Howard starred at Downingtown West and led his team to a District 1 crown in 2019, its first since 1996, he was recruited by the University of Pittsburgh. Maureen recalls visiting the school, which shares facilities with the Steelers, then watching a Pitt game at Heinz Field, now called Acrisure Stadium. Seven years later, it’ll be Howard’s new home.

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Following four seasons at Kansas State, Howard led the Buckeyes to a national championship last season, throwing for 4,010 yards and 35 touchdowns, both career highs. In Pittsburgh, he’ll be joined by a familiar face: Jack Sawyer, the Ohio State standout defensive end. The Howards and Sawyers have gotten close over the last year.

“We’ve gotten a taste [of Pittsburgh] and love it,” Maureen said. “And [we] are excited to dive more into the [Pittsburgh] culture. I think we’re going out there this weekend with the Sawyers to kind of start to really dive into Pittsburgh.”

In the aftermath of being drafted, Howard has already gotten a jump on his NFL preparations.

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On Sunday, Howard reached out to Steelers quarterback coach Tom Arth for play installs, according to his mother, much to the delight of the Steelers coaching staff. “[Arth] wrote [Will] back and said, ‘Hey, we were going to give you the weekend off, but this is why we drafted you, because it’s the kind of worker you are,’” Maureen said.

The pair have a history dating back to high school, when Arth recruited Howard while he was head coach of Akron.

Howard’s quarterback trainer, Jake Heaps, also has familiarity with Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith’s system, as he also trains Russell Wilson, who played in Pittsburgh last season.

For the first time since high school, Howard will play home games in the state he grew up in. It’s been a long journey for Howard, from Downingtown, to Manhattan, Kansas, and Columbus, Ohio. Now, a four-hour drive on the turnpike will allow his family to make the trip from Downingtown to Pittsburgh to watch him in the NFL.

“It’s amazing as a parent to truly see your child accomplish their childhood dream,” Maureen said. “Not too many people can say that, but he told me, from a young age, ‘Mom, I’m going to be an NFL player,’ and to see that come to fruition, it’s overwhelming pride and joy, knowing the backstory of the hard work, the trials, the tribulations, the highs and the lows. No one will outwork [Will]. I can guarantee you that he’ll give it everything he has.”