Kirk Herbstreit (/ˈhɜːrbstriːt/; born August 19, 1969) is an American analyst for ESPN's College GameDay, a television program covering college football and a provider of color commentary on college football games on ESPN and ABC. He appeared annually as a commentator in EA Sports' NCAA Football until the series was put on hiatus following NCAA Football 14. He was a quarterback on the Ohio State football team. He saw action in several games his junior season and was the starting quarterback throughout his senior season.
Herbstreit graduated from Centerville High School in Centerville, Ohio, a suburb of Dayton. As a quarterback for the Elks, he was the Ohio Gatorade Player of the Year as a senior. He also was a standout baseball player.
Herbstreit was the first player to commit to the Ohio State Buckeyes after the hiring of John Cooper as head coach in 1988. Herbstreit was a four-year letter winner as a quarterback at Ohio State University from 1989 to 1993. After waiting his turn as a Buckeye starter behind Greg Frey and Kent Graham, Herbstreit finally led the team as a senior in 1992. That year, he was a co-captain (along with linebacker Steve Tovar) and was voted team MVP. Herbstreit passed for 1,904 yards that season, including four 200-plus yard games, before losing to the Georgia Bulldogs in the Florida Citrus Bowl. As a college quarterback, Herbstreit had held the Ohio State record for pass completions in the rivalry game against Michigan, with 28 passes for 271 yards in a 13–13 tie in 1992, until it was broken by Troy Smith in 2006.