Scarlet Sunrise: C.J. Stroud enters Week 11 as Heisman favorite again

Good morning, Ohio State fans, and welcome to the Scarlet Sunrise. Football will always be our focus, but every day we’ll cover news, notes and analysis from across Buckeyes sports. Join us each morning to get caught up on everything you missed in the world of Buckeyes football, recruiting, basketball and more in Scarlet Sunrise.

C.J. Stroud enters Week 11 as Heisman favorite again

Ohio State was fortunate three top-10 teams lost last weekend. But the program, and more specifically quarterback C.J. Stroud, was also fortunate that Tennessee’s Hendon Hooker — the quarterback of one of those three losing teams — suffered a setback. After all, Hooker had surpassed Stroud in the Heisman Trophy race the week before. But the 24-year-old Hooker passed for a season-low 195 yards against No. 3 Georgia. Plus, Hooker didn’t log a touchdown pass for the first time all year while throwing his second interception of 2022. Hooker had to deal with rain in the second half of that game.

Still, those conditions paled in comparison to the ones Stroud was facing at Northwestern, where winds blew north of 40 miles per hour and rain whirled sideways. Stroud actually ran for more yards (79) than he passed for (76), and he matched his single-game season high of 10 incompletions in just the first half. But Stroud found a way to win, setting the stage for a pair of Buckeyes touchdowns with zone-read pulls.

Stroud’s odds to win the Heisman are now at +142, according to the folks at Vegas Insider, whereas Hooker is at +297. Stroud is hoping to become the first Buckeyes player to win the award since quarterback Troy Smith in 2006.

Ohio State basketball’s 2023 signing class ranks eighth nationally

Chris Holtmann is in his sixth year as head coach of Ohio State basketball, and he just reeled in his second straight top-20 signing class, according to On3, which ranks this Buckeyes 2023 class eighth nationally and second in the Big Ten behind only Michigan State. It’s a group that features a trio of four stars — small forward Scotty Middleton, shooting guard Taison Chatman and power forward Devin Royal — as well as 6-foot-10 and three-star center Austin Parks.

The foundation is in place for Holtmann. Ohio State returned a mere three players from its 2021-22 team for this season, and that’s allowed the Buckeyes to play their top-four freshmen, in addition to a trio of veteran transfers. That group of freshmen will be sophomores when the 2023 signees get to the Schottenstein Center next year. If all goes well — and everyone stays (you never know in today’s college basketball) — that’s a core of eight underclassmen, seven of whom are four stars.

Lettermen Row recruiting analyst Matt Parker reached out to On3 national recruiting analyst Jamie Shaw for a Q&A on more insight about this newest crew of Buckeyes players. Check that out here.

Full coverage of Buckeyes preparation for Indiana

Ohio State is hosting an Indiana team that’s in complete free fall Saturday afternoon. The Hoosiers kicked off the season with a surprising win over Illinois — a victory that looks strange now, considering that the Fighting Illini are 7-2 — and, soon after, marched on to a 3-0 start. Since, they’ve lost six consecutive games. It’s the sixth full season of Tom Allen’s tenure. The magic of Indiana’s 2020 campaign wore off a long time ago. Indiana has just one Big Ten over its last two seasons.

Spencer Holbrook, Andy Backstrom and Tim May were back inside the Woody Hayes Athletic Center after Wednesday’s practice, discussing how the matchup with Indiana could be a “get right” opportunity for the Buckeyes offense during the Practice Report presented by Byers Auto. Every Wednesday night following the media session with select Buckeyes players, Spencer, Andy and Tim will chat about the major Ohio State storylines and what’s to come in the weekend ahead.

The Lettermen Row squad is back for a full report on what it learned after hearing from Buckeyes players.

Counting down

Buckeyes vs. Indiana: 2 days away

Buckeyes vs. Michigan: 16 days away

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