Ohio State QB C.J. Stroud thinks of loss to Michigan as a positive, calls the rivalry a war

“You think about that game forever,” Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud said at Big Ten Media Days about their 42-27 loss to Michigan last November.

Stroud said that he still thinks about that game, but he’s tried to find silver linings from it.

“Something like that definitely does stick in your mind, but you gotta be able to learn on and just learn from it. I feel like every failure that you don’t learn from is an L, but every failure that you do learn from is a W,” Stroud said. “I definitely learned from it, learned how to game manage better from that game — when to take the shot, when not to, move in the pocket.”

Stroud went a step further in finding good within that gray day in Ann Arbor which crushed Ohio State’s hopes of a Big Ten title and College Football Playoff berth.

“There’s a lot of different things you can take from that game, and I think of it as more of a positive honestly.”

Stroud didn’t have a bad game against Michigan by any means, he was 34-of-49 for 394 yards with two touchdowns. Stroud was getting harassed all day by the relentless pass-rush of Michigan and most of the blame for the loss can be attributed to Ohio State’s defense not being able to stop Hassan Haskins, who rushed down their throat for five scores.

Stroud was complimentary of the Michigan program, saying there’s no bad blood off the field from his perspective, but come every November he knows what will await both teams.

“It’s respect both ways, but at the same time it is a war,” Stroud said.