COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud has officially announced he will be entering his name into the 2023 NFL Draft.
Stroud made the announcement on his Twitter account Monday morning.
"This process has been difficult, and the decision, one of the hardest I've ever had to make," he wrote. "As a kid, I dreamed of playing football at the highest level and after much prayer, I've made the decision that it's time to turn those dreams into a reality."
The redshirt-sophomore was the starting quarterback for the Buckeyes for the last two seasons where he won 22 games including a Rose Bowl in 2021 and leading the team to the College Football Playoff in 2022.
In his final game with Ohio State, Stroud threw for 348 yards and four touchdowns in a 42-41 loss to Georgia in the Peach Bowl.
In his two years, Stroud finished second in school history with 575 career completions, 8,123 career yards and 85 career touchdowns.
Stroud also has the second and third best passing yards in a season with 4,435 (2021) and 3,688 (2022) and the second most touchdown passes in a season at 44 (2021).
The California native finished his career with multiple records at Ohio State, including season/career completion percentages, passing yards per game season/career and passing efficiency season/career.
He owns five of the top 10 passing yards in a game including the No. 1spot with 573 against Utah in last year's Rose Bowl.
Stroud’s play landed him as a two-time Heisman Trophy finalist where he finished fourth in 2021 and third in 2022.
He was also a two-time Big Ten Conference Graham-George Offensive Player of the Year, Griese-Brees Quarterback of the Year and was named the Thompson-Randle El Freshman of the Year in 2021.
With Stroud's departure, Kyle McCord and Devin Brown will be going into spring football to determine the program's next starting quarterback.
McCord has appeared in 12 games over the last two years, including a start in 2022 against Akron. He has thrown for 606 yards and three touchdowns.
Brown made an appearance in two games this year.