COLUMBUS, Ohio — Kamryn Babb is a former Ohio State football player. When he was growing up, his dream was to play in the National Football League.

What You Need To Know

  • Kamryn Babb wanted to play in the NFL and went to Ohio State to play football, but injuries changed his dreams

  • Babb learned a lot from the adversity he went through and it's shaped who he is today

  • Babb's story at Ohio State isn't over, he now works for the Eugene Smith Leadership Institute 

“Growing up, you’ve got this dream or this vision of playing in the NFL,” he said.

Babb moved from St. Louis to Columbus to be a Buckeye, but his dreams changed.

“I came in a four-star recruit, tore my first ACL my senior year of high school and then really there was this journey throughout college of tearing it four more times,” he said.

Babb caught one pass during his five-year career at Ohio State. It was in 2022, during his final season, in a game against Indiana. Babb had an eight yard touchdown reception, a moment he won’t forget. Babb expressed how much of what he went through on the field shaped him into who he is off.

“The adversity that I had to go through I would say it will always be something that I hold near and dear to my heart because it’s made me the man that I am today,” he said.

Babb’s journey playing football is over, but his journey at Ohio State is not. Babb works for the Eugene Smith Leadership Institute as the assistant director of annual giving. It wasn’t his original plan, but he’s thankful for his time playing football and the people he met along the way.

“I wouldn’t take back anything that has happened,” he said.