COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio State football begins its 2021 season on the road Thursday night at Minnesota. Kickoff is set for 8 p.m. Eastern.
WATCH LIVE FOR FREE: fuboTV (free 7-day trial)and Hulu Live TV (free trial).
The Buckeyes reached the national championship game last season, and Thursday night will be the first career start for redshirt freshman C.J. Stroud, a former five-star prospect. Minnesota is coming off a 3-4 season in 2020, but it brings back the Big Ten’s leading rusher from last season in Mohamed Ibrahim.
Who: No. 4 Ohio State (7-1, 5-0 in Big Ten in 2020) at Minnesota (3-4, 3-4).
When: Thursday, Sept. 2, 2021.
Time: 8 p.m. Eastern.
Where: Huntington Bank Stadium, Minneapolis (50,805).
TV: Fox.
Cable channel finder: AT&T U-Verse, Comcast Xfinity, Spectrum/Charter, Optimum/Altice, Cox, DIRECTV, Dish, Verizon Fios, WOW.
Live streams: Fubo.tv (FREE 7-day trial); Hulu + Live TV (FREE trial); and Fox Sports (TV provider sign-in required).
Latest line: Ohio State -14.
Announcers: Gus Johnson, Joel Klatt and Jenny Taft.
Read some of what Nathan Baird of cleveland.com wrote about why the Buckeyes believe in Stroud as he makes his first collegiate start.
Ohio State lineman Nicholas Petit-Frere watched the quarterbacks he will protect as they battled during preseason camp under adverse conditions.
Practices washed out by rain. Others which roasted under high suns with heat indexes surpassing 100 degrees. When the weather did not make the quarterbacks uncomfortable, Buckeyes coach Ryan Day did his best to rattle the three players competing to start Thursday’s season opener at Minnesota.
As those weeks unfolded, Petit-Frere saw C.J. Stroud break through and seize the moment.
“There are just certain guys that rise to the cream of the crop and come through in those big moments and inspire the team to keep pushing through, and C.J. did that almost every single time,” Petit-Frere said.
“Those are the kind of moments we see from him that show that type of leadership, and his personality to persevere though anything that happens.”
When Stroud leads Ohio State’s offense Thursday night at Huntington Bank Stadium, it will mark the culmination of a process that began even before his competition with Jack Miller and Kyle McCord ramped up in the spring. A year before that, Stroud and Miller arrived to back up Justin Fields and begin the development that led to this debut against the Golden Gophers.
Day kept the pressure on even when giving Stroud the starting nod. His assignment applied only to Thursday’s game. Nothing else was guaranteed.
“It’s hard to be a quarterback around here,” Day said Monday. He made certain that applied to preseason practices as well. Senior receiver Chris Olave said the first two weeks of preseason camp provided insight into how the quarterbacks would respond when things did not go according to plan.
“We were going through a couple of disruptions from the defense, so it was it was tough mentally on the quarterbacks,” Olave said. “But it was good for good for us to see C.J. stand out and take that spot.”
The decisive moments came outside the practice windows open to reporters. Per multiple accounts the real separation came during the Buckeyes’ two intrasquad scrimmages, where Stroud’s personality and ability to lead touchdown drives solidified the decision.
“He’s built for the moment,” senior tight end Jeremy Ruckert said. “He’s shown that he can play big in the moment, in practice and throughout training camp.
“We’re not really looking for much other than him being himself, because that’s what got him here. Sticking to that and being himself is what’s going to put us ahead.”
For team hats, shirts or other gear:
Visit Fanatics, Lids, Champs Sports, Dick’s Sporting Goods or New Era.
No. 4 Ohio State vs. Minnesota football free live stream: How to watch, TV, odds | C.J. Stroud - cleveland.com
Read More
No comments:
Post a Comment