Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Stroud works on OSU legacy
During C.J. Stroud’s second trip to New York in as many years as a Heisman Trophy finalist, he noticed his picture on some of the billboards in Times Square and took a moment to reflect.
“I was talking to my mom and my cousins and my brother and my sister who came with me, and who would have thought?” Stroud said.
Stroud is 21-3 as Ohio State’s starting quarterback. He has collected back-to-back honors as the offensive player of the year in the Big Ten from The Associated Press (he shared it in 2021) and the junior is considered one of the top NFL prospects at his position. But he’s been on the losing end of both meetings against archrival Michigan and the Buckeyes did not reach the Big Ten title game in either season with him behind center. He finished third in the Heisman voting this year after finishing fourth a year ago.
Crucial losses and questions surrounding Ohio State’s offense have lingered around Stroud’s legacy, notably this season amid the absence of playmakers like wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba or TreVeyon Henderson and Miyan Williams at running back due to injuries.
Stroud isn’t putting his head down. He hears the skeptics and said it’s unjust for others to criticize him and his teammates beyond the football field as a result of injuries or an outcome on the scoreboard.
“Of course I take it very serious,” Stroud said. “A lot of people would just watch the game and be on the couch. I live it. Every single day. I’m the one who’s getting laughed at on TV.”
No. 4 Ohio State (11-1) got a second chance of sorts and landed in the College Football Playoff, where it will face No. 1 Georgia (13-0) in the Peach Bowl on Dec. 31. The winner will play either TCU or Michigan for the national championship Jan. 9. For now, his time at Ohio State is unfinished — and he has a chance to complete it with a storybook ending.
“I love being a Buckeye,” Stroud said. “No one can take that away from me.”
Tune leads Houston’s rally past La-Lafayette: Clayton Tune connected with Nathaniel Dell for a 12-yard touchdown with 20 seconds remaining, and Houston rallied from a 13-point deficit to beat Louisiana-Lafayette 23-16 in the Independence Bowl on Friday. The TD pass was Tune’s third of the game and 40th of the season, tying him with Western Kentucky’s Austin Reed for the most in the nation.