Ohio State Football: Confidence level against Youngstown State
By Eric Boggs
The X Factor – Confidence Level 10
The Ohio State football fans on social media have become toxic over the perceived quarterback competition. So much so that Kirk Herbstreit came out on the Pat McAfee show and stated that 15% of the Buckeye fanbase are “jack—–.” When the media met with the team on Wednesday after practice, several players were asked about social media and whether or not they pay attention to what the fans are saying about them and the team.
Team Captain and starting tight end Cade Stover offered the following statement when asked about whether he hears what fans are saying on social media and about the quarterback situation.
"“Nobody here (within the program) cares about what they say. We appreciate all of their support and everything else, but when it comes down to the X’s and O’s, they don’t see the thousands of reps we are putting in and what Kyle (McCord) and Devin (Brown) are putting in. That’s a tough spot to step into and to be honest with you, I think they did well. I trust whole heartedly in both those guys with the game in their hands.”"
No matter what we write about or how you interact on your social media accounts, it will not change how Ryan Day is going to approach this quarterback situation. In my opinion, this entire situation with Day’s inability to name a starter with complete confidence publicly has been blown out of proportion.
If anything, it could possibly galvanize the team moving forward. If Stover and some of the offensive guys are willing to speak publicly when asked, you can bet that they are going to want to shut some people up. But even that doesn’t necessarily mean much.
"“When you first deal with it, it’s hard not to look at some of that stuff (on social media) I guess,” Stover went on to admit. “Once you go through it and you realize that some home boy in his basement texting about you really doesn’t matter what you are going to do on Saturday. I can assure you, that when we go into that game on Saturday, we are not thinking about Johnny in his basement typing, ‘Hey, you guys suck!’”"
I love this answer from Stover. At the end of the day, it’s about those players and coaches in the locker room. It isn’t about the people on social media or the writers. It isn’t about you who is reading this article or me who is writing it. Success and failure belong to the players and coaches.