Young Love
A Great Catch! All About Ohio State QB Will Howard & Girlfriend Lauren Leiker’s Romance
Ohio State University quarterback Will Howard is a winner on and off the field, having taken his team all the way to this year’s College Football Playoff National Championship and having been in a longterm loving relationship with his girlfriend Lauren Leiker. Their love story, however, predates this quarterback’s underdog run to the finals.
Howard actually began his collegiate football career in 2020, first playing for Kansas State University before transferring to Ohio State University in 2024. Now playing for the Buckeyes, Howard and his team will square off against the University of Notre Dame’s Fighting Irish, who are ranked just above the Buckeyes’ No. 8, in the CFP National Championship on Jan. 20. Thanks to Howard, Ohio State prevailed yet again during the playoffs in their most recent Jan. 10 win against the University of Texas Longhorns.
Howard and Leiker’s love story caught the public’s attention after she was seen at this year’s Rose Bowl game in support of her boyfriend. Following Ohio State’s win on Jan. 1, Howard was seen searching for Leiker in the crowd. The two shared a kissed that went viral on ESPN’s Instagram shortly after. Keep reading to learn all about how Howard and Leiker brought their love all the way to the end zone and what was so special about that viral kiss.
How did Will and Lauren meet?
Howard and Leiker met at Kansas State University. She was there at the same time as Howard, studying human health biology and integrative health services from 2019 to 2023, according to her LinkedIn. Howard, who joined the Kansas Sate Wildcats in 2020, had about three years of overlap with Leiker, so it is unclear when the two first officially met.
The couple appear to have been officially together since 2023 when Howard posted Leiker on his Instagram account for the first time that April. In the photo, they’re dressed nicely with wide, open-mouthed smiles. Leiker seems to keep her personal life private, as her social media accounts remain private, and she has not appeared in any of Howard’s posts since.
View this post on Instagram
Does Lauren Leiker go to Ohio State?
Leiker does not go to Ohio State. She solely attended and graduated from Kansas State University with a bachelor’s degree in human health biology and integrative health services. After Howard transferred from Kansas State to play in Ohio, the two were in a long-distance relationship, about a five-hour flight from one another.
What does Lauren Leiker do for a living?
Leiker has worked as a medical assistant for a dermatologist in Kansas since May 2022. The clinic, called Johnson County Dermatology, specializes in skin tag removals, excisions, chemical peels, and biopsies, and her own assistant work spans the rosters of four independent dermatologists, totaling over 35 patients.
Previously, Leiker worked at a golf cart company as a sales and logistics coordinator from May 2017 to April 2022.
What happened at the Rose Bowl?
Howard and Leiker went viral at the Rose Bowl after the two shared a Swooon-worthy kiss following Ohio State’s shocking victory against the Oregon Ducks. The quarterback celebrated the win by finding Leiker in the crowd and going in for the kiss. The moment that caught fans’ attention, however, was how he turned his cap backwards in order to kiss her properly.
The kiss, and cap spin move, went viral online after ESPN shared a clip on their social media.
College Football Playoffs National Championship, Monday, January 20, 7:30/6:30c, ESPN
