CJ Stroud encourages receivers to stay positive after bad outings

Ohio State is coming off of a 21-7 win over Northwestern, where the real winner may have been the elements as pouring rain and 30-mile-per-hour wind persisted throughout the contest. The Buckeyes didn’t play their best, with players like wide receiver Emeka Egbuka being hard on himself for dropping passes in their last two games. Quarterback CJ Stroud spoke on he lifts his teams up teammates up after games like last Saturday.

“I get mad at them for getting down on themselves, honestly it’s football, mistakes happen,” Stroud said. “I mean I make mistakes on a daily basis on a play that I have no business messing up on.”

Stroud also touched on how some of the team’s emotions may stem from the fatigue of the season, as the undefeated Buckeyes enter their tenth game of the season this weekend when they take on Indiana in another road test.

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“I’ve been telling a lot of our players this lately just because later on in the year human nature kicks in where you feel like, not that you suck, but it’s just like why can’t I get it right yet? Just because it’s week 10 and your body’s already beat down a little bit so you’re trying to really get through it, but you’re still trying to be efficient and definitely be more effective,” Stroud explained.

Stroud even shared some of his own personal motivation as they reach the final few games of the season, drawing inspiration from one of basketball’s best to keep himself on track and not too hard on himself.

“So I understand where it comes from, I get down on myself even, but I always remember, I think Michael Jordan said this, where he missed 26 shots of game winners but made many more. As long as you’re up there at bat giving it your all then that’s the only thing I can be really really happy with,” Stroud said. “So I’ll just tell them man move on, great players know how to just move on to the next play and to keep going, because I make mistakes myself.”

Stroud steers the ship for the Buckeye’s offense and their entire team, as leadership and play have propelled them to a 9-0 record and a No. 2 ranking in the latest College Football Playoff poll. Ohio State will go as far as Stroud can take them, and hopefully for the Buckeyes, they can bounce back this weekend and gain some newfound momentum heading into a crucial stretch of the season.