Vice President JD Vance had a major mishap during The Ohio State University football team’s visit to the White House.
President Donald Trump and Vance, 40, hosted the Buckeyes at the White House on Monday, April 14, to celebrate their 2025 national championship win. The president, 78, addressed the team and the crowd before Trump and Vance posed for a photo with the team.
After taking a few pictures, Vance seemingly pointed at the trophy indicating that they should pose with it in addition to Trump’s jersey and football helmet. One player nodded his head at Vance in encouragement. The politician walked over to the trophy and attempted to pick it up.
Vance seemingly struggled to lift the heavy hardware, so one of the athletes tried to help. Vance scooted the trophy across the table, and as the player held the top of the trophy, Vance listed up the base. The top then disconnected from the bottom.
Vance dropped the base on the ground, earning a series of gasps from the audience. Vance and Ohio State running back TreVeyon Henderson then attempted to put the award back together. A third person went to help the two, but the group decided to only pose with the gold portion of the trophy, which Vance held up, covering his face.
After Vance’s mishap went viral, he took to social media to address the flub.
“I didn’t want anyone after Ohio State to get the trophy so I decided to break it,” he quipped via X on Monday.
Vance is an alum of The Ohio State where he attended for his undergraduate degree before going to Yale Law School. He previously served as one of Ohio’s senators before Trump selected him as his VP.
The Ohio State won the championship back in January. The Buckeyes faced off against Notre Dame, defeating the Irishmen 34-23. The win was Ohio State’s ninth championship with their last victory occurring in 2014.
When the team was invited to the White House, coach Ryan Day expressed how it was “an honor to be invited.”
“I remember growing up and watching the national championship teams go to the White House,” he said in March. “I always looked at that, like, ‘Man, what an honor that would be.’ So, it’s part of the celebration of our team. I’m looking forward to getting that all planned out.”
This is Trump and Vance’s third visit from a winning sports team. The pair hosted Stanley Cup champions the Florida Panthers back in February. Earlier this month, the Los Angeles Dodgers visited the White House to celebrate their 2024 World Series victory.
