Ohio State not planning to rest C.J. Stroud as he works through shoulder issue
COLUMBUS — There are growing pains and there is literal pain for C.J. Stroud.
Neither appears like it will force the Ohio State quarterback to miss his next start against Akron on Saturday.
The redshirt freshman has made it quite clear that his shoulder is not 100 percent, an issue that first popped up during training camp and has continued to be apparent during game action over the first three weeks. Combining that lingering situation with the fact that Ohio State is a massive favorite against Akron and the possible desire to get reps for two other young passers and the potential exists to give Stroud a breather in the Horseshoe.
At least for now, that doesn’t appear to be an option the Buckeyes want to take.
“I don’t know, we can talk about that as the week goes on,” Ohio State coach Ryan Day said on Tuesday. “But his plan is to practice right now.
“If it works out, we’ll [play other quarterbacks]. But when C.J. gets in there, we also want him to find a rhythm as well and get that execution of the offense. That’s the No. 1 goal is to make sure that we’re executing at a high level and finding that rhythm. I don’t think we’ve found that quite yet, and we’re going to get that done here this week with some things we’re going to address in practice, how we’re teaching and all those things. At the end of the day, that’s what we’re trying to find. If something presents itself where we can get other guys in the game, we certainly want to do that.”
The Buckeyes have another five-star freshman waiting in reserve in Kyle McCord, and redshirt freshman Jack Miller is on hand looking for reps as well. Neither has attempted a pass at the collegiate level — and presumptive backup McCord hasn’t even stepped on the field yet for Ohio State.
Stroud has consistently stressed that he’s healthy enough to play, and he’s shown why he was the pick to lead the attack with a handful of elite throws already in his young career. But he’s balanced that with some attempts that have sailed high and a couple bad decisions that produced interceptions, and Ohio State is trying to evaluate whether it’s the shoulder or the inexperience leading to the inconsistency.
“Little bit of both,” Day said. “I don’t know if you can quite identify those type of things. It’s sometimes timing in practice, and that leads to things like that. When you get more reps under your belt, you feel more comfortable. If you rep it better in practice, all those things add up. Those are all things we’re working through with a young quarterback.
“I think there’s a lot of great football ahead for C.J. Stroud. I just do. When you look at the situation he’s been put into, some of the throws he’s made, you can see he can do it. Now he’s got to keep growing on it.”
C.J. Stroud will get that opportunity again on the practice field this week, and that should mean another chance to start for Ohio State.
If there is more pain either way, that plan could be subject to change.
