LEXINGTON — Cade Stover is surprising people again — people who shouldn’t be surprised.
Stover is one of the best athletes to come out of Ohio in the past decade. An All-Ohio basketball player who led his Lexington team to the Final Four as a junior, he became the state’s Mr. Football as a senior and the Gatorade Player of the Year.
Yet he’s constantly shocking those paid handsomely to understand such ability.
Saturday was just the latest example. Stover caught three passes for 87 yards in the first quarter of Ohio State’s 77-21 smashing of Toledo.
Through three games he’s caught eight passes for 137 yards (17.1 avg.). After the game, offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson noted his big tight end’s talents.
“He’s a much better athlete than people give him credit for,” Wilson said, echoing far too many who seem stunned the Lexington graduate is not just a good, but great, athlete.
“I think he’s the quintessential tight end because he’s got size, toughness and he’s not flashy. Our team loves him. I love him and I think he’s a special player. We are just starting and we’ve got a long way to go with him and I’m counting on a big year out of that kid.”
Actually, I disagree vehemently with Wilson. Stover is not a natural tight end. He’s a natural linebacker learning to play tight end.
But this is the fourth autumn Stover has spent in Columbus and the third different position he’s played, two of them in one game. At Michigan last year, he played on both sides of the ball — at tight end and linebacker — in an embarrassing blowout loss.
Clearly, the Buckeyes’ coaching staff has long grappled with understanding Stover’s skillset.
For those of us who were awed when the Lexington freshman led the Ohio Cardinal Conference in tackles from his safety position, he’s long seemed the quintessential defensive player, a veritable tackling machine.
While he gained 1,477 yards rushing and scored 17 touchdowns as a senior on offense, he collected 163 tackles and four interceptions while earning a national semifinalist nod for the Butkus Award, given to the nation’s top high school linebacker.
Still, misjudging Stover seems baked into his persona — for whatever reason.
On March 15, 2018, Stover was just a junior in high school when he absolutely dominated a regional basketball game that led Lexington past Wauseon and into the Elite 8. The versatile forward dropped 13 of his game-high 21 points in the final 6:26 to dismiss the undefeated Division II state poll champions 52-46 at Bowling Green.
“We knew coming in he was very good and very physical,” Wauseon coach Chad Burt said that night. “I kind of stereotyped him as a football player playing basketball, but the reality is he’s a basketball player.
“He kind of took the game over …”
When Stover arrived in Columbus, many fans immediately penciled him in as the next Sam Hubbard, a high school safety at Cincinnati Moeller moved to defensive end by the OSU coaches. Really, the only thing Hubbard and Stover shared was similar measurables. Both were in the 6-foot-5, 220-pound range in high school.
In 2019, Stover started in the linebacker room at Ohio State, and was then moved to defensive line. When OSU defensive line coach Larry Johnson figured out Stover wasn’t a fit at defensive end, the Lex grad was kicked back to the linebacker room.
This is where I, and a number of the area’s high school coaches who long watched him excel on the defensive side of the ball, felt he fit best.
But while Stover played linebacker at times last season (notably at Michigan and started and finished with six tackles in the Rose Bowl win over Utah), he was moved yet again this offseason back to tight end.
At that point, I hoped he would transfer.
Obviously the Buckeyes had three-plus years to see him on a daily basis and still no clue how to use him. Some of us figured a pure football player with Stover’s skills wouldn’t have a problem strutting his stuff for a different coaching staff.
To his credit, Stover had no such interest. He was a Buckeye. In fact, he was such an offseason warrior, he was voted a team captain — despite his limited playing time.
While I’m still convinced he’s not playing his optimal position, he’s at least on the field — and still surprising people.
“I think we saw what Cade (Stover) can do,” Ohio State coach Ryan Day said after Saturday’s beating of the Rockets. “We saw his versatility. Now you know how tough he is, physically on the line of scrimmage.
“Now you’re starting to see what a weapon he is in the passing game.”
Stover made a couple of fine grabs on the sidelines, showing off the physical attributes many of us in north central Ohio have seen since he was 15 years old. We’re not shocked at what he’s doing in Columbus.
Neither is quarterback C.J. Stroud.
“He’s very versatile. He had a great game, phenomenal game; blocked his tail off and ran great routes and had great body language,” Stroud said “I’m just excited for him to see his work pay off.
“He’s the person on the team I look up to, honestly. He always puts confidence in me and I definitely think he’ll continue to be great.”
It’s a shame the Buckeyes took so long to figure out what they had. I’m just excited to finally see a young man with such undeniable talent and outstanding intangibles finally get the chance he deserves.
“He’s a real leader because he leads by actions first,” Wilson said. “His work ethic, his durability, his consistency. We GPS track those guys yardage and he’s got a lot of yards in Tuesday and Wednesday practice, but then he’s up there blocking those (Ohio State) defensive ends, who are some of the best defensive ends in the country.
“The wear and tear that he puts (on his body) and his ability to consistently practice earns him great respect from his teammates.”
And now, finally, it’s paying off.
“(Cade Stover is) the person on the team I look up to, honestly. He always puts confidence in me and I definitely think he’ll continue to be great.” — Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud
