Five Ohio State football players who have defined the Ryan Day era so far
By Ryan Stano
3. C.J. Stroud
After Fields left the Ohio State football team, it was time for Day to find a new quarterback. It was a three-player battle that ended with C.J. Stroud as the choice. Stroud struggled at first, losing his second-ever start when Oregon took down the Buckeyes in the Shoe.
Stroud took a lot of criticism for that loss, as he should've. He wasn't very good. He took the next game off against Akron to rest a shoulder injury. Once he came back, he was lights out. Stroud ended up becoming a great weapon for the Buckeyes over the course of the next two years.
In 2021, Stroud had 4,435 yards passing, 44 touchdowns, and just six picks. That culminated in the Rose Bowl when he threw for 573 yards and six touchdowns. That Rose Bowl gave the Ohio State football team a lot of momentum heading into the 2022 season.
In that 2022 season, Stroud led the Buckeyes to the College Football Playoff. He played the best game of the season against Georgia in the Peach Bowl, but his defense and his kicker let him down. Because of that, they came up just short of playing for a national championship.
Stroud never beat Michigan, something Day has had issues doing. He left after the 2022 season and became the second overall pick in the Draft. He ended up being the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year for the Houston Texans.
The next player on this list is the best receiver that Day has ever coached.