C.J. Stroud
With the second pick in April’s draft, the Houston Texans selected Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud. He described how God had “prepared me for this moment,” saying, “God has battle-tested me…He’s scarred me, so I’ve been battle-tested. I have the armor of God on me.”
Some of those scars came from a difficult adolescence. Stroud’s father, a former pastor, is serving a 38-year prison sentence for a drug-related crime spree. After his arrest, the family faced financial hardships and almost became homeless.
As a follower of Christ, Stroud, just 21, said he feels called to be a leader among his teammates. “I definitely try to show love and let people know that whatever they’re going through or whatever they have been through, they’re not by themselves,” he told Sports Spectrum after the 2023 draft. “They have help. They have inspiration. They can look up to me.”
