Teresa Varley

It was a moment that went viral during the NFL Draft, when Ohio State quarterback Will Howard was shown during the filming of 'Hey Rookie: Welcome to the NFL' talking on camera and said, "Please pick me, Pittsburgh. Please pick me, please."

And then seconds later, the phone rang.

On the other end it was the Steelers, selecting him in the sixth round of the NFL Draft and ending what was a long wait for the reigning National Champion quarterback.

"I'm not a huge believer in manifestation, but I guess in that case," said Howard a week after the draft. "I'm just glad that I was right."

He was spot on. And it was something that ended what was a tough few days waiting.

"When I finally saw that phone ring and it said Pittsburgh Steelers at the top, I was like, 'Oh my gosh, this is it.' I was literally begging, please guys just pick me. After my experiences with Coach (Mike) Tomlin and everybody from the Steelers at the NFL Combine, I had a formal interview with them there. And then Coach and (offensive coordinator) Arthur (Smith) and (General Manager) Omar (Khan) all had dinner with us for our Pro Day. After those two interactions, you never know what's going to happen in this process, but I wanted to be a Steeler. Coach Tomlin, I want to play for him.

"I ended up in the perfect spot for me. It's a match made in heaven. I was so fired up when I got that call, and I heard Omar's voice. I was like, man this just could not be better."

The call set off a range of emotions for Howard, including tears of joy as he hugged his parents, Bob and Maureen Howard, after the call from the Steelers.

"It meant the world to me," said Howard. "My parents have been there with me all the way. We're a really close family. They've seen me get through some of the hardest times in my football career, and they've seen me reach the mountaintop. It was really special."

Another moment Howard won't ever forget was releasing the emotions in another fashion.

Jumping into the pool.

"Throughout the whole three days, I kept saying to my friends and my family, I'm doing a freaking nose-dive in the pool with all my clothes on whenever I get this call, because this has been the longest three days," said Howard. "I just needed to. I didn't care. I'm jumping in the pool.

"When I finally got the opportunity, the 'Hey Rookie' people asked me to just make sure you take the mic off because they kept hearing me talk about it. I was kind of joking about it before that, but then I was like, hey, I got to do it now. I ripped a little front flip, and it was awesome."

Since he was drafted, Howard has had a little down time to let it all sink in. He spent time on the golf course with his dad, made a trip to Pittsburgh with his family and the family of Jack Sawyer, his Ohio State teammate who was drafted by the Steelers in the fourth round, and has taken some time to breathe before getting right back to football.

"The past week or so has been nice to unwind a little bit, regroup, and now obviously get ready for minicamp," said Howard. "I feel like throughout this process, everything's such a go, go, go kind of mentality. I've been able to play golf with my dad a couple times. I haven't had much time to sit back and relax and enjoy the journey that I've been on until now. I get the opportunity now to relax and appreciate all the people that have been there with me through it.

"It's still surreal that I am in the NFL. I don't know if that'll ever settle in. It's something I'm going to keep close to my heart. It has been my dream my whole life and I'm never going to take it for granted.

"Ever since I was a little kid, this has been my dream. I remember writing something in first grade what I wanted to be when I grew up. It's always been, I want to be a professional athlete. Through this whole process, my parents and I were talking about the grind, and you never know how things can go. Through it all I wanted to remember what younger me would be thinking. And I really am blessed."

And what would the younger Howard be thinking, the first grader who played catch in the backyard with friends, always hoping for these days.

"I think he'd be thinking we did it, we finally did it," said Howard. "All those years of work, all those times where I'm working out in the in the dark out front of my house when I was in middle school. The younger me would be in awe.

"Before we played in the national championship, I said to my teammates remember what younger you would say right now. He'd be all in and he'd be really proud of the person you are now."