Dwayne Haskins was a winner, unlike Adam Schefter and Gil Brandt

Today, all of Buckeye Nation mourns the passing of former Ohio State quarterback Dwayne Haskins, who was taken from us far too soon this morning in a reported car accident at just 24 years old.

Dwayne was a treat to watch in his time in Columbus, and knocked down program record after program record as the Buckeyes’ quarterback. His 2018 season was one of legends, cementing his name in Ohio State lore with his 4,831 passing yards and 50 touchdowns — both of which still stand atop the school’s storied history. Of the top 12 passing performances in Ohio State history, Haskins owns six of them, highlighted by his 499-yard showing against Northwestern as he led the Buckeyes to a Big Ten Championship.

Outside of what Dwayne was for Ohio State on the field, he was seemingly an even larger presence off of it. On today, the saddest of days, you see an outpouring of so many that held Haskins in such high regard and looked up to him as a kind soul with so much more to offer than just the game of football. Teammates, family, friends and anyone who spent even a little bit of time around Dwayne Haskins have had nothing but great memories of the young former college star. Even his new Pittsburgh Steeler teammates who had barely gotten to know Dwayne have expressed how much of a positive presence he was to be around.

Dwayne’s story began with fairytale and ended in tragedy. The video of him proclaiming he would one day play at Ohio State as a young child back in 2008 is being circled around social media today. Haskins not only accomplished his childhood dream, but did so as one of the best to ever do it at one of the highest levels in all of college football. He parlayed that into becoming a first round NFL Draft pick, and while he never got a full opportunity to showcase his talents in the league, he still accomplished so many of his goals in his short time with us, and touched so many lives around him while doing so.

The news still doesn’t feel real to me. It feels like just yesterday I was watching Haskins toss the rock at Ohio Stadium. I can’t accurately put into words how deeply saddening this news truly is to so many people. I feel for Dwayne’s family, his loved ones, his friends, his former teammates, and anyone else with a personal connection to a young man with so much still ahead of him. We will always remember his standout performances at Ohio State, and we are thankful to have watched him on our TVs and in the stands as he gave his all week in and week out for the Buckeyes, but we know he was much more than a football player.

Dwayne Haskins deserves to be remembered for who he was: a star on and off the field. Adam Schefter and Gil Brandt’s wildly inappropriate and insensitive comments in his passing should not shape the narrative of Haskins as a person. Schefter’s only claim to fame is that he is good at using a cell phone, while Brandt’s Super Bowl rings dont mean shit when you're a garbage human being. Those two guys could only aspire to be half the man that Dwayne Haskins was, and they should be ashamed of themselves for their decorum in the wake of an awful tragedy.

However, the biggest losers of the football world dont deserve the spotlight on a day like today. Today is a day to remember Dwayne Haskins, as so many that knew him have:

A man who chased his dreams and touched so many. Rest In Peace, No. 7.