C.J. Stroud is not the reason Ohio State lost to Oregon and he has played very well, but you are not wrong for wanting to explore the other options. I recently saw the following tweet:
I don’t think anyone is saying CJ played poorly… Fair or not the standard he’s held to is Justin Fields.
And there’s work to get there https://t.co/yhnREkOyX1
— Bobby Carpenter (@Bcarp3) September 16, 2021
Most people commenting are saying it is an unfair statement from former Buckeye linebacker Bobby Carpenter because Justin Fields is arguably the greatest quarterback to play for Ohio State. I agree finding a talent like Fields is rare, but Carpenter is 100% right and I struggle to see why people don’t agree.
Let’s look at Stroud’s play through three games. First, it needs to be noted that he is playing with arguably the greatest receiving corps in college football and Ohio State history. Through two games Stroud has suffered a few rough overthrows including two with under eight minutes left against Oregon, with one turning into an interception. Stroud has also already thrown two interceptions this season. Through two games, Stroud’s completion percentage sits at 62.4%. Last season Fields was sitting at a completion percentage of 87.76% through three games. I understand Fields was a freak, but it should be noted.
Now let’s look at the offensive production overall. The defense is getting all of the heat and rightfully so, but the Ohio State offense gained 612 total yards and only came away with four touchdowns against Oregon. That is not ideal. They were also 2 of 5 on fourth downs, also not an ideal statistic. If those stats don’t have you questioning the offense maybe this will.
The Buckeyes scored 28 points against Oregon at home with their two most valuable defenders out, one being arguably the best defender in the country. The week prior, Fresno State scored 24 points against this defense in Oregon with those two defenders actually playing! Maybe we can take into consideration that the Ducks were looking ahead, but at that point, we are just making excuses.
C.J. Stroud was not much better, and in fact digressed against a far more inferior opponent in Tulsa, who lost to an FCS school two weeks prior.