COLUMBUS, Ohio — C.J. Stroud has been named the starting quarterback for the Buckeyes against Minnesota on Sept. 2.
Ohio State coach Ryan Day made the announcement during a press conference on Saturday.
“Over the body of work between the spring and then also through preseason, (Stroud) separated himself with his decision-making, his leadership skills, his accuracy,” Day said. “Now, we got to go prepare to go play a game.”
Day wouldn’t say who would be next in line.
“The other guys in the room understand that this is a long season and that room has to be strong,” he said. “We know at Ohio State that it takes everybody in that room, so that room needs to continue to work. It’s a long way to January and that’s been the message. The focus has to continue to be about development, but also to encourage the other guys in that room.”
Stroud is a 6-foot-3, 218-pound redshirt freshman from Rancho Cucamonga, California, who played sparingly last year in mop-up duty.
Earlier this week, Day said Stroud was the frontrunner for the starting quarterback job, moving in front of Jack Miller, a member of that same 2020 recruiting class, and freshman Kyle McCord.
The wildcard was Quinn Ewers from Southlake, Texas, the No. 2 high school prospect in the 2022 class who decided to forgo his senior season and come to Ohio State to take advantage of endorsement offers via new NIL rules. Ewers is enrolled and is going through the process to be eligible to play this season.
“I think he knows that this is just an opportunity,” Day said. “It’s not an accomplishment, it’s an opportunity, and I think he looked at it like that. Now we got to go about the business of going to put it on the field.”
Ohio State also named captains this week.
They include receivers Chris Olave and Kamryn Babb, offensive lineman Thayer Munford, defensive linemen Haskell Garrett, and Zach Harrison and linebacker Teradja Mitchell. All are first-time captains.
