Ohio State has selected six captains for the 2022 season.
Fifth-year senior wide receiver Kamryn Babb, third-year quarterback C.J. Stroud, fourth-year tight end Cade Stover, fourth-year linebacker Tommy Eichenberg, fifth-year defensive end Tyler Friday and third-year safety Kourt Williams have been named Ohio State’s captains for the 2022 season.
— Ohio State Football (@OhioStateFB) August 13, 2022
2022 Ohio State Football Captains@kamm_o @tommyike41 @TylerFriday_ @CJ7STROUD @cstov8 @kourt22williams #GoBucks pic.twitter.com/kJgzJHZQji
Babb, who was also awarded the Block 0 jersey on Saturday, is the only returning captain from last season. Fourth-year defensive end Zach Harrison and fifth-year linebacker Teradja Mitchell were not selected as captains this year even though they were captains last year.
The captains were selected by a player vote, and Stroud received the most votes among all players.
It’s the second year in a row that Ohio State has named exactly six captains. Ohio State named at least seven captains every year from 2016-20, topped by an all-time high of nine captains in 2017.
Also like last season, Ohio State will have three captains on offense and three captains on defense.
Stroud, who is entering his second season as Ohio State’s starting quarterback, has drawn praise all offseason for his growth as a leader now that he has a year of experience under his belt.
“C.J.’s always had very good leadership skills,” Ryan Day said at Big Ten Media Days. “He's always had a voice. But once you go on the field and show credibility that you can do it, you walk a little differently and guys look at you through a different lens, and I think that's been the case.”
Babb, Stover, Friday, Eichenberg and Williams were all named as Iron Buckeyes (along with third-year wide receiver Julian Fleming and fourth-year safety Ronnie Hickman) for their effort and performance during offseason workouts, so it’s no surprise that each of them were selected by their teammates to be among the Buckeyes’ top leaders this year.
Babb has consistently been regarded as one of the Buckeyes’ top leaders for the past two years even though he has not yet caught a pass at Ohio State due to repeated knee injuries.
Day recently identified Stover as a player who had an “unbelievable summer,” while defensive coordinator Jim Knowles described Eichenberg as a “quarterback of the defense” (along with Hickman) and a “quiet leader.”
Williams has drawn repeated praise for his work ethic since he arrived at Ohio State, as numerous players and coaches identified him last year as the hardest-working player on the team. Day has also identified Friday several times this preseason as a player who he expects to make a difference this fall after missing last season with a torn ACL.
Ohio State has placed an increased emphasis on leadership this offseason after losing two regular-season games, including its first loss to Michigan since 2011, last year. The Buckeyes put together a 24-player leadership council during winter workouts, and will be expecting all of those players to set an example for the rest of this year’s team to follow.
“We decided that leadership was the No. 1 thing we needed to get done in this offseason,” Day said on the first day of spring practice. “We didn't have that in the Team Up North game, that's just the truth … when we get our backs up against the wall, we need guys to step up.”
Day didn’t specify who those 24 players were, but we now know which six players the Buckeyes will be counting on to be their biggest leaders this fall.
