"I didn't watch one second of the draft": Former Ohio State WR recalls cold draft day story

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The Ohio State Buckeyes are one of the most prestigious programs in college football, and as a result, they usually produce several players who get drafted into the NFL each season. In 2024, one of those players was wide receiver Cade Stover. He was a member of the Buckeyes for three seasons from 2021 to 2023.

After the 2023 season, Stover decided to forego his final season of eligibility and declare for the 2024 NFL draft. He was selected by the Houston Texans with the 123rd pick overall in the fourth round of the draft.

On Friday, the Houston Texans posted a video on their X account where Stover can be seen talking about his draft day experience. The 24-year-old admitted that he was not watching the draft at the time he was drafted.

Instead, he was out working the fields with his father when he got the call from head coach, Demeco Ryans, that he had been drafted. Stover said:

"I didn't watch one second of the draft. Any of it. I was actually unhooking my dad's chisel plough from his tractor and my phone rang. We just got done working ground and I'm literally cranking the jack on the chisel plough to unhook that and I had headphones on, just one ear, just so I can make sure my phone, I didn't miss it."

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He went on to be a full-time player this past season for the Texans, appearing in 15 games and making 15 receptions for 133 yards and one TD.

The Ohio State Buckeyes have 10+ players who could be drafted in the 2025 NFL draft

In the 2024 NFL draft, the Ohio State Buckeyes had four players selected: Marvin Harrison Jr., Mike Hall, Cade Stover, and Tommy Eichenberg. It was the fewest number of Ohio State players selected in the draft in 11 years.

The 2025 NFL draft appears to be more fruitful for the Buckeyes. According to Pro Football Focus, there are 14 players who are likely to be drafted. The lowest-ranked among these players is the No. 202-ranked player. 224 players will be selected in the draft, so most of those 14 players will likely be drafted.

Of the lot, at least two are projected to go in the first round. Wide receiver Emeka Egbuka and offensive tackle Josh Simmons are both ranked within the top 20 by Pro Football Focus. Another notable player in the draft from Ohio State is QB Will Howard, who is projected to be a mid-round pick.

About the author

Alexander O'Reilly is a journalist at Sportskeeda from Kingston, Ontario with over seven years in the field at companies including SenShot, RVBlogger, Monarch Media, WordAgents, GSeC LLC, and IGC.

His favorite college team is Duke, and his favorite sporting memory was Duke winning March Madness in 2010. JJ Redick was Alex's favorite college player when he was young but more recently, Caleb Williams gets the nod. As the Chicago Bears are Alex's favorite NFL team, this was a perfect match.

Alex's proudest moment came when he was interviewed by a radio station in Ottawa on his opinion on recent moves by the Ottawa Senators, which gave him a confidence boost and the knowledge that he could succeed as a writer.

Aside from sports, Alex likes to spend his time playing games. He is also very passionate about running and strives to improve at the half and full marathon distances.

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Edited by Satagni Sikder