College GameDay chronicles Jack Sawyer's tribute to fallen cancer patient bearing same name
College GameDay remains the pre-eminent pre-game show for all of college football, regularly providing all the inside stories for the best matchups all season long. This time, that matchup includes Ohio State and Notre Dame in the national championship, and GameDay chose a particularly touching story involving Jack Sawyer to highlight.
On the football field, Sawyer is a 4-year contributor for the Buckeyes who has elevated his game in the College Football Playoff. He was particularly instrumental in the Cotton Bowl, clinching Ohio State’s win with a dramatic scoop-and-score in the 4th quarter.
But if fans have paid attention to Sawyer’s accessories over the past few seasons, they’ve likely noticed “JBSSTRONG” written on his wrist tape. In College GameDay’s special segment, they detail how that statement is Sawyer’s tribute to a young cancer patient, Jack Bennett Sawyer, who passed away in 2023.
“To Jack Sawyer, how’s it going? You’ve got a pretty sweet name I see, haha,” the OSU Sawyer can be heard reading from a letter he wrote to Jack Bennett Sawyer. “Just wanted to say you’re an inspiration to me and all my teammates, and to keep fighting! I’m praying and looking forward to seeing you ring the big bell.”
The young Buckeye was diagnosed in the spring of 2022 with an aggressive bone cancer at the age of 15. The mantra “JBS Strong” was invented by Sawyer’s family to raise awareness to the specific form of cancer and support their son in the journey.
The story of JBS eventually made its way to Jack Sawyer, and the star defender reached out. JBS would ultimately ring the bell with news that his cancer was in remission but it did come back.
JBS passed away in 2023 at the age of 17, but the OSU Jack Sawyer keeps his legacy alive with his wrist tape. The defender also believes his presence was there in that impactful Cotton Bowl play.
“There’s no doubt he was there on that play. He was escorting me to the end zone,” Sawyer said of his scoop-and-score vs. Texas.
Here is the full segment from College GameDay ahead of the national championship:
Ohio State DE Jack Sawyer honors a 17-year-old boy named Jack Bennett Sawyer who died from cancer in 2023 by wearing JBSSTRONG on his wrist tape every game.
(via @JenLada) pic.twitter.com/0Ayma9gmMg
— College GameDay (@CollegeGameDay) January 20, 2025