College football players and coaches openly talked about their faith on the biggest stands this season, and on Monday the two teams that had that conversation will face each other in the national championship.
Ohio State is the favorite in the title game, but for many players their faith, rather than statistics and analytics, is the driving factor behind their confidence on the pitch.
Ohio State quarterback Will Howard (18) passes against Texas during the second half of the Cotton Bowl College Football Playoff semifinal game, Friday, Jan. 10, 2025, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Gareth Patterson)
In a series of interviews with Sports Spectrum this season, several Buckeyes players talked about turning to faith and how it affected their performance on the field.
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“I would say over the past few years we’ve kind of been — there’s been a lot of players on the football team that have put their faith back in Jesus Christ. And that was something that was big for me my freshman year,” star receiver Emeka Egbuka said issue in November.
Egbuka, a senior, recalled the turning point for him in an interview. His teammates invited him to attend Mass, and he said it was the first time he felt a true connection to his faith.
“Since then my life has changed. A complete 180, and I have a similar testimony as many players on the team. We have been praying for this kind of revival in our team and we decided to share with everyone what God has been doing in our football team.”
Egbuka said he decided against entering the NFL draft last season because he felt a calling that was “bigger” than football.
Ohio State Buckeyes’ Emeka Egbuka #2 runs the ball during the first quarter of the game against the Oregon Ducks at Autzen Stadium on October 12, 2024 in Eugene, Oregon. (Alika Jenner/Getty Images)
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“I felt the Lord leading me back to Ohio State for another year. I felt the Lord asking me a question, testing my heart, ‘If you come back next year for this, you’re going to have this huge platform, you’re going to have a lot of followers, you’re going to have these accolades – this name that you have to live up to, and you can do one of two things with that moment. You can use it to celebrate me or you can celebrate yourself,’ so I saw it as a kind of challenge and something I had to do.”
Star running back TreVeyon Henderson said in a separate interview with this newspaper that despite his outstanding rookie season, which included success and NO contract, he turned to his faith after the injury.
“He saved my life from going down that path of destruction. He saved me. He put me on this path of eternal life… you see so many people go down that great path of destruction, but I’m so thankful that Jesus, He took me saved me from that path and put me on His path.”
Ohio State Buckeyes running back TreVeyon Henderson (32) scores a touchdown on a 75-yard touchdown catch and run against the Texas Longhorns in the second quarter of the Cotton Bowl Classic during the College Football Playoff semifinal game at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on January 10, 2025. (Kyle Robertson/Columbus Dispatch/USA Today Network via Imagn Images)
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And just last month, tight end Gee Scott Jr. he said that this season is marked by a great spiritual change.
“I would just say that there is a mass herd of people who are making a public statement that they are going to give their lives to Christ, which I highly commend, because, especially in this age and 2024, the world that we live in right now, there are so many things that you can allude to or that you can give your life, there are so many things you can give your life to.”
This week only, Notre Dame running back Riley Leonard praised both teams for being so open about their faith and believes that is a big reason why they are the two teams fighting for the biggest prize in college football.
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