Kirk Herbstreit Stands Firm Amid Backlash: What He Really Meant by His ‘Political’ Remark Sparks Debate
Every once in a while, a sports figure steps outside their usual playbook and throws a curveball that sparks more than just the usual chatter about touchdowns and tactics. Kirk Herbstreit, the familiar face and voice of college football, recently dropped one of those rare—but necessary—comments on social media that some folks quickly tagged as “political.” But here’s the kicker: Herbstreit isn’t usually the guy to wade into that arena. Yet, in the wake of the tragic passing of young Ohio State Buckeye Ben Christman, he’s boldly advocating for a revamp in how we screen athletes for hidden heart conditions—because apparently, an EKG alone just doesn’t cut it anymore. Given his personal connection—his son’s own heart battle—Herbstreit’s call to mandate echocardiograms in college sports strikes a deeply personal chord. Now, I have to ask… when did safeguarding young athletes’ hearts become a political hot potato instead of just common sense?
Oh, and in true Twitter fashion, the conversation quickly veered into the usual territory of vaccine debates, but Herbstreit stood his ground, keeping the focus where it belongs: on saving lives. It’s a conversation worth having, without the sideline distractions—because heart health shouldn’t have a political playbook.
Kirk Herbstreit isn’t backing down from what some are calling a “political” comment on social media.
The former Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback turned college football announcer doesn’t get political very often. Herbstreit, who lives in Nashville, is fairly honest about where he stands on many political issues. However, the ESPN college football and Amazon Prime NFL analyst doesn’t delve into political waters very often.
Still, Herbstreit doesn’t shy away from discussing topics that some might consider to be “political.”
The ESPN college football analyst made what some are calling a “political” comment on his social media feed. He’s not apologizing for it, either.
In the wake of the cause of death of Ben Christman – the former Ohio State Buckeyes football player who died at 21 – being revealed, Herbstreit took to X, formerly known as Twitter.
Herbstreit is calling for a change in the way student athletes are tested for heart issues.
“I’m so sorry to hear this and my condolences to Ben’s family-I can’t imagine what they’re going through. It’s time we find answers to these existing cardiovascular issues and an EKG isn’t getting it done. Would love to partner with others to mandate that intercollegiate physicals include echocardiograms. My son was diagnosed at 20 years old with cardiomyopathy (enlarged left ventricle). Was severe enough that a heart replacement was talked about if his heart didn’t improve,” he said.Â
“Thankfully it has improved since the spring of 2023. Too many young people are asymptomatic and unaware of any issues that exist. A mandated Echo could help save lives. It’s time for the NCAA and Conference Commissioners to take a look at this. Love to be involved.”
Unsurprisingly, many fans took to X to suggest that Ben could’ve been vaccinated.
“Was he vaccinated for Covid?” one fan wondered.
Herbstreit clapped back: “I have no idea about Ben and his health history and respectfully this isn’t about politics. Heart disease-cardiac arrhythmia-irregular heartbeat have been an issues with young people for generations! My grandfather-aunt-brother-myself all diagnosed with cardiomyopathy. All these can be diagnosed with the proper testing-it’s expensive to do it universally but feel it’s last time to help prevent these unfortunate type of situations. Please don’t take the low hanging fruit and make it about Covid-the vaccine-or your politics. This has been an issues for several decades.”
Another fan responded: “It kinda is about politics and the forcing of people to take an untested vaccine that has resulted in an abnormally high number of heart defects in young people.”
Herbstreit stood his ground, though.
“All good. If it’s okay let’s sidebar that discussion-just for a moment. Whether the vaccine added to this issue or not-the point is my suggestion about making Echos mandatory in college athletics is past due and hope we can make it happen albeit very expensive and I’d like to use my platform and family experience with heart disease to offer my support. That’s all,” he said.
All good. If it’s okay let’s sidebar that discussion-just for a moment. Whether the vaccine added to this issue or not-the point is my suggestion about making Echos mandatory in college athletics is past due and hope we can make it happen albeit very expensive and I’d like to use… https://t.co/tf0rJz2hXn
— Kirk Herbstreit (@KirkHerbstreit) May 9, 2025
Few people, if any, should disagree with Herbstreit’s suggestion, “political” or not.
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