Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud could’ve won the Heisman Trophy against Michigan, and Ryan Day
COLUMBUS, Ohio — C.J. Stroud wanted to go for it as he visibly and animatedly waved Ohio State football’s punt team off the field in a situation the quarterback clearly knew was vital for a team teetering on another loss to Michigan.
Too bad the person running the show didn’t feel the same way.
Head coach Ryan Day chose to punt and give the ball back to OSU’s rival, which then drove down the field to make it a two-score game and what ended up being the ultimate nail in the coffin. From that point on, a packed Ohio Stadium’s worst fears were starting to be realized.
For the second straight season, the Buckeyes lost to Michigan, 45-23, and they only had themselves to blame. Day and Stroud had a chance to cement their Ohio State legacies by avenging a loss to Michigan, but instead, they only tarnished something already in question.
Everything the two wanted to accomplish was on the table simply by answering the call in The Game. A matchup between the nation’s No. 2 and No. 3 teams had everything on the line, from conference supremacy and postseason hopes to the legacy-defining moments on the table for both
Somehow, that already bright stage found a way to shine a little brighter thanks to a game that found the Buckeyes trailing 24-20 entering the fourth quarter, with the Wolverines in prime position to make it 31-20.
Stroud needed his defense to offer some aid, but Jim Knowles’ unit didn’t provide him with it. An untimely pass interference set Michigan up at the 1-yard line and, after a few tries, the Wolverines finally punched it into the end zone on a J.J. McCarthy run, making it a two-score game with 13:10 left to play.
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Ohio State needed what should be its best two assets to be the best possible versions of themselves to pull off something special. But as was the case all afternoon, the play-caller didn’t let his playmaker succeed.
Way too often, the Buckeyes were reluctant to throw horizontal passes and run the ball instead of putting the game into the hands of a potential Heisman Trophy quarterback and a wide receiving corps that’s supposed to be the best college football has to offer. The aggressive play-calling style that we’d come to expect was nowhere to be found.
Meanwhile, Michigan held no punches with McCarthy, who completed 12 of 24 for 263 yards and touchdown passes of 69, 75 and 45 yards, plus a 3-yard rushing touchdown.
The Wolverines were aggressive regardless of where they were on the field. That meant going for it on fourth down in minus territory and occasionally dialing a play that was clearly something they’d been saving for this game all season.
Stroud finished the afternoon 31 of 47 passing for 349 yards and two touchdowns. That’s 7.4 yards per attempt. It’s the fifth time in his career he’s been under nine yards per attempt.
By halftime, Stroud found himself second in Ohio State history in both passing yards and touchdowns behind J.T. Barrett. His career numbers serve as the epitome of what Day was originally hired to do under Urban Meyer, by not only fixing the passing game but taking it to heights the program had never seen.
And none of it will matter because he’s 0-2 against Michigan. Those are the only numbers anyone who cares about the Buckeyes will pay attention to
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Read More: Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud could’ve won the Heisman Trophy against Michigan, and Ryan Day