By Dr. Jessica Johnson
Guest Column
The 2023 NFL Draft is in the books, with sports analysts already in the process of drawing up mock draft prospects for next year’s college stars.
It still amazes me how the draft, one of the most hyped events in pro football, becomes old news so quickly after the seventh round is completed over a three-day span. Yet, fans remember the top stories that shape the drama and excitement surrounding their favorite players, and as an Ohio State fan and alumna, I was closely following the draft process of our former QB1, C.J. Stroud.
Just days before the draft, Stroud’s S2 cognition test scores were leaked, and sports writers began to predict a rapid slide for him in the first round. The S2 test measures how prospective players process information in game speed, an important assessment for quarterbacks.
Stroud expressed that he believed the leaking of his S2 results was deliberate, but in the end it didn’t matter, as he was selected as the second pick by the Houston Texans and became the highest-drafted quarterback in OSU history. When I watched Stroud tearing up and overcome with emotion, I posted this reaction on one of the 11 Warriors’ Twitter feeds: “When God takes the weight off your shoulders!”
The weight that Stroud was bearing was indeed stressful, as predictions of falling in the draft indicated the possibility of losing millions if he became a late first-rounder. Also, the doubt about his leadership abilities extended the skeptical narrative that has followed Ohio State QBs in recent years.
During the 2021 draft, Justin Fields experienced the media spreading similar misgivings about his work ethic and fell to the 11th spot, where the Chicago Bears traded up to get him. Fields has had a rough two years in the Windy City, but he and Stroud have an incredible opportunity to change the trajectory of OSU quarterbacks in the league.
Stroud’s remarkable journey to the NFL has included personal hardship along with the extreme criticism of his decision-making due to his tendency not to scramble for yards, the latter being the main gripe from many Buckeye fans during his two-year tenure in the scarlet and gray.
The harsh backlash Stroud endured from going 0-2 against our Big Ten conference rival, the Michigan Wolverines, was definitely a baptism by fire in the press and on social media, but Stroud took full responsibility for coming up short in those games. We witnessed him coming full circle as a quarterback when he used his legs against Georgia in last season’s Peach Bowl in the College Football Playoff semifinals. Stroud’s precision in picking apart the Bulldogs’ stacked defense by throwing for four touchdowns and 348 yards was more than enough proof on tape for the Texans that he can be a franchise QB.
For me as a Buckeye, I was moved by two distinctive responses Stroud gave in interviews on draft night. The first was when he stated that he has been “battled tested” and that he has on the armor of God.
Stroud didn’t quote the verses of the sixth chapter of Ephesians that outline the armor, but I believe he knows a thing or two about holding up the shield of faith described as “(quenching) all the fiery darts of the wicked.” The darts hurled toward Stroud by the naysayers and haters in college were swift, and in the NFL, when fans are impatient with rookie quarterbacks, darts are fast and furious.
The second impressive response was when Stroud was asked what he would bring to the Texans, a team that is looking for a new identity with a new head coach in DeMeco Ryans. Choking up a little, Stroud said, “I bring me. I bring a man of God. I bring a leader. I bring someone who is going to go to work every day.”
I pondered those stirring words, “I bring me,” from a young man who was never handed anything in his life. A young man who was almost homeless growing up in Southern California with his mother and three siblings. A young man who had to constantly prove his worth on the gridiron.
Those inspiring words, “I bring me,” indicate that Stroud knows everything God has brought him through equipped him to meet each challenge he will face when he straps on his helmet as a pro.
Stroud is bringing his spirited heart, grit, toughness and resilience to the NFL. He will forge his own path fueled by his faith, and I’ll be cheering him on every step of the way.
Dr. Jessica A. Johnson is a lecturer in the English department at The Ohio State University-Lima. Reach her at [email protected] or on Twitter @JjSmojc. Her opinion does not necessarily represent the views of The Lima News or its owner, AIM Media.
