Ohio State is gaining yet another important participant on offense for their Cotton Bowl matchup against Missouri on Friday, as senior tight end Cade Stover announced on Wednesday that he will suit up one final time for the Buckeyes at AT&T Stadium.
“I came down to play,” Stover told the media at AT&T Stadium. “I signed up for a full year, I’m going to play a full year. Will I play every snap? I doubt it. But I’m definitely going to be in the game on Friday. So I want to go out with these guys on the right term.”
Stover has exhausted all his collegiate eligibility, which means the Cotton Bowl will be his last ever game for Ohio State. The tight end said that this reality has motivated him to finish off his five-year Buckeye career on a high note on Friday, while also allowing the younger players on the team to assume some of the spotlight.
“The guys you start out with, go out with them, and go out with them on a positive note,” Stover said. “That’s what we’re going for.”
“For the young guys, it’s your time to show what you can do, and a little territory for what you’re going to do next year,” he added when asked what this game means to the team. “And for the older guys, like I said, just go out on the right note.”
Stover, who called his decision to return to Ohio State for his senior season the “best decision of my life,” is looking to finish off one of the most productive seasons for a tight end in Buckeye history. Stover’s 41 receptions and 576 receiving yards both currently rank third in single-season program history for tight ends, while his five touchdowns rank second on the team behind only Marvin Harrison Jr. His efforts this season also propelled him up the career tight end record books, where his 1,058 receiving yards, 10 touchdowns and 82 receptions rank third, tied for third and third in program history at the position.
Stover said that while he hasn’t had much time to look back at all he accomplished during his Buckeye career, he is proud of what he has accomplished while donning the Scarlet and Gray for Ohio State.
“Not really,” Stover said when asked if he has thought about what he has accomplished at Ohio State. “There’s so much that goes into this. This is a very stressful time for a guy leaving. Making decisions, hard decisions, it’s hard. But regardless, it’s good to think back and see (what I accomplished as a Buckeye).”
