A celebration of the Ohio State Buckeyes turned into a viral moment for Vice President JD Vance after their championship trophy fell apart in his hands at a White House ceremony on Monday afternoon.
Vance, hosting the college football team on the South Lawn, picked up the trophy following remarks in which he and President Donald Trump praised their national championship victory against Notre Dame in January. The base then came undone, leading members of the audience to gasp as it fell to the ground.
TreVeyon Henderson, a running back for the team, helped Vance put the trophy back together as members of the team stood behind them on the stage.
Vance was an Ohio senator before ascending to the vice presidency and is an Ohio State alum. He addressed the group just before the photo op that led to the broken trophy.
“I’m so proud to be part of team scarlet and gray today. Congratulations to the Ohio State Buckeyes on a hell of a 2024 season,” Vance told the players. “I just want to say I’m proud of you guys. You guys were resilient. You were tough. You represented the state of Ohio well. You represented the whole country well.”
Later on Monday, the vice president joked about the trophy incident on X after the clip went viral.
“I didn’t want anyone after Ohio State to get the trophy so I decided to break it,” Vance wrote.
Other signatories including Ohio State President Ted Carter and Gov. Mike DeWine (R-OH) attended the Monday event at the White House.
