Source: Tom Williams / Getty
Since Donald Trump first became president in 2016, major sports teams making celebratory visits after winning their respective championships have become politicized.
And with the decision to attend or not often revealing your political leanings, it’s become pretty stressful. Now, a new fear of the ceremonious event has been unlocked beyond some ribbing from the president: dropping the trophy.
The Ohio State Buckeyes were hosted by President Trump at the White House this Monday after winning the College Football Playoff National Championship against the University of Notre Dame in January. Vice President JD Vance has never heard the adage, ‘It’s heavier than it looks.’
The VP went to pick up the awkwardly ablong trophy and barely got it a few inches off the table before the base fell to the ground as the top was caught by coach Ryan Day and star running back TreVeyon Henderson, who stood behind him. As they made the most clutch catch of their careers, the rest of the team behind them looked on with bewildered shock, disbelief, and laughs.
After picking up the base and the players putting the two pieces back together, he appears unsteady with it again before placing it down.
For a little background, the CFP National Championship Trophy took three months for expert craftsmen to construct. Its regulation-sized football peak is made of steel with a 24-karat gold and bronze casing and weighs a hefty 35 pounds. The base and the precious metal are actually two separate pieces, though.
“Designed by Pentagram, the trophy was commissioned by the CFP for the new playoff era. The design features a focused football at the center of the base that rises to form an actual-size ball,” reads the design studio’s site. “Standing at a total height of three feet, the trophy and base are two integral but separate pieces, so the trophy may be lifted up independently when it is awarded each year following the national championship game.”
Vance, an Ohio State graduate, tried to make light of the fumble on X after the event, tweeting, “I didn’t want anyone after Ohio State to get the trophy, so I decided to break it.”
Vance also joked that he wanted to see the Buckeyes take on the Fighting Irish in the National Championship game on Jan. 20, but Trump nixed the idea because it fell on the same day as the inauguration.
See how social media is reacting to Vance almost memeing himself into oblivion below.