'Didn't want anyone else to have it': JD Vance jokes after trophy drop

JD Vance dropped Ohio State's national championship trophy during a White House photo op, later joking, 'I didn't want anyone after Ohio State to get the trophy so I decided to break it'

What was meant to be a proud celebration of Ohio State University’s national football championship turned into an unexpected viral moment on Monday, when US Vice President JD Vance dropped the team’s trophy during an event.

 

Following a round of spirited speeches from President Donald Trump, Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day, and Vice President Vance himself, the South Lawn was buzzing with energy. Vance, an Ohio State alumni, took the stage to lift the golden trophy but didn’t realise the sleek top wasn’t attached to the black base.

 

In front of players, coaches, and a national audience, Vance lost his grip. The football-shaped top of the trophy separated mid-lift. TreVeyon Henderson, OSU’s star running back, caught the top midair, but the base tumbled to the ground, rolling a short distance as the Vice President scrambled to retrieve it.

 

 

The CFP National Championship Trophy falls apart as VP JD Vance tries to hold it aloft at the White House. pic.twitter.com/XYmZRnCsK0

— Philip Melanchthon Wegmann (@PhilipWegmann) April 14, 2025

 

  The Marine Corps Band played ‘We Are the Champions’, but the music was nearly drowned out by gasps and chuckles from the crowd and players witnessing the mishap. 

With help from Henderson and Coach Day, Vance managed to reassemble the trophy. He later posed holding just the golden top.

Trying to lighten the moment, Vance took to X (formerly Twitter), joking: “I didn’t want anyone after Ohio State to get the trophy so I decided to break it.”

   

I didn’t want anyone after Ohio State to get the trophy so I decided to break it https://t.co/rS3Vw3BdO6

— JD Vance (@JDVance) April 14, 2025

 

  The ceremony had started on a high note, with President Trump commending the Buckeyes for their 2024 championship run, especially after facing ‘adversity’, including a surprise 13-10 loss to unranked Michigan at home in November. 

“I hesitate to mention it,” Trump quipped, referencing Ohio State’s fourth straight loss to their longtime rival. “The team up north — we won’t talk about it.”

 

Before the trophy mishap, Vance also poked fun at the rivalry, calling out an audience member wearing Michigan gear: “I don’t know who let the guy over in the corner here, in a Michigan hat, into this celebration,” he said. 

 

“But I’m about to tell the Secret Service, ‘You’ve got a dangerous weapon, sir,” he added.

   

[With agency inputs]