Desmond Howard on Moments, Mentors and Mindset

I sat down with ESPN College GameDay analyst, 1991 Heisman Trophy winner and Super Bowl XXXI MVP Desmond Howard when he was back in town for a sports business panel at The Boca Raton. It was a conversation highlighting the Boca Raton Bowl and what it means to this community. Sharing the stage with Howard that day were Vice President of ESPN Events Clint Overby, Director of Events Kristen Shaver, and Orange Bowl CEO Eric Poms.

Sports Business Panel with The Boca Raton's Justin Ely, ESPN's Paige Kornblue, Desmond Howard, Kristen Shaver, Clint Overby and Orange Bowl CEO Eric Poms

For Howard, the Boca Raton Bowl wasn't just another assignment on the broadcast schedule. 

It was personal.

“I called the Boca Raton Bowl for TV and full disclosure, I used to call Boca Raton home. So that was even cooler for me. The stadium… it’s quaint, it’s a beautiful stadium, and then you can actually see the water from the stadium. Visiting teams would come down here and they were just blown away by the beauty of Boca Raton and then the hospitality of the Executive Committee,” said Howard.

Desmond Howard at The Boca Raton headlining the 2024 Boca Raton Bowl Sports Business Panel

Now, as the college football season kicks off, Howard is gearing up for another year on ESPN’s College GameDay. This one carries extra meaning; it will be the last season with legendary analyst Lee Corso at the desk.

“College football is really special. I played college at Michigan, I played the NFL too. The NFL is as big as it gets… but college football is so unique. There’s this really unique culture that’s there… to continue to be a part of that culture by being on ESPN’s College GameDay is really a blessing,” added Howard. 

Behind the camera, Howard says preparation is nonstop. “It’s like watching film. It’s talking to sports information directors, talking to offensive coordinators, defensive coordinators, analysts. And then it’s making tapes, because I have to do tapes for our show. There’s just a lot of activity during the week that leads up to that show on Saturday. It’s really hard to quantify the amount of time that goes into it.”

But when he steps away from the lights of GameDay, Howard is clear about what matters most.

“It’s the most rewarding part of my life. I absolutely love being a father,” he said. “People say they love their children, like I’m in love with my children. We have a wonderful relationship. It’s the best part of my life. I feel as though I was born to do it, actually.”

That message echoed in 2021 when Howard returned to Boca Raton as keynote speaker for the YMCA of South Palm Beach County’s Inspiration Breakfast. His focus that day wasn’t football but kindness. “It doesn’t take much effort at all to be kind to people. And people, they remember that. To me it’s like an effortless gesture. So why don’t you just be kind to people?”

ESPN College Gameday's Desmond Howard shows moderator, ESPN Boca Raton Bowl's Paige Kornblue how to do the Heisman pose he made famous | YMCA Inspiration Breakfast 2021 (Photo Courtesy of Carlos Aristizabal)

From his Boca connections to the College GameDay stage, Howard continues to live by the lessons passed down from mentors like the late Greg Harden, who once told him: “What you need to focus on is becoming the best version of yourself.”

As Howard puts it today, “I’ve always been motivated, I’ve always had a foundation of discipline… and my children motivate me. They definitely play a role of motivation too.”

Whether it’s inside Flagler Credit Union Stadium on the campus of FAU, on set with ESPN, or alongside colleagues at The Boca Raton, Desmond Howard brings the same approach: discipline, preparation, kindness… and always, community.

Hear more from Desmond Howard on the Inside the Boca Raton Bowl podcast and The Paige Kornblue Show podcast. ESPN College Gameday airs Saturday mornings from 9 AM - Noon ET. The Boca Raton Bowl is set to kick off December 23 at 2 PM ET at Flagler Credit Union Stadium on the campus of FAU and broadcast live on ESPN. 

ESPN College Gameday's Desmond Howard and moderator, ESPN Boca Raton Bowl's Paige Kornblue, YMCA Inspiration Breakfast 2021