Ryan Day believes C.J. Stroud ‘deserves all of his success’ with the Texans.

Houston Texans rookie quarterback and former Ohio State Buckeyes signal-caller C.J. Stroud has a record-setting day on Sunday, setting a new rookie mark by posting 470 passing yards to go along with five touchdowns in his team’s 39-37 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In other words, Stroud isn’t playing like your typical rookie. He protected the ball well, executed in the quick game as necessary, and refound the explosives that eluded the Texans a loss the week prior. Against a talented defense and one of the more uniquely coached units in football, the rookie was the moment. Week 9 wasn’t the first week Stroud set an NFL record, either. Before the New Orleans Saints gave Stroud the first interception of his career in Week 6, no rookie had thrown more passes without a pick to start their career. Stroud’s college coach, Ryan Day, isn’t surprised at all. “He deserves all the success that he’s receiving,” Day said. “This is somebody who went through a tough time in the draft process. A lot of people questioned him in certain ways. You never saw him react in any way. He’s handled himself like a pro.

“(The Texans) voted him captain,” Day said. “He’s a captain there. For a rookie, out the gate, that’s tremendous. He walked in and endeared himself to that organization. Now, you’re starting to see him perform on the field. He’s given that organization hope. It’s the same thing Garrett Wilson did with the New York Jets last year.”

Day says the winning attitude and high expectations were instilled in Stroud since his very first day on campus in Columbus. “Our guys understand what the expectation is,” Day said. “You’re there to win every game. It was great to see him quickly jump into that role and have the success he’s had. Still a lot of football ahead of him, though.”

Stroud was the best player on the field on Sunday, and Week 9 gave the Texans one of those wins to hang their hats on when things get tough – a sort of confidence as the year rolls on.

Really, Stroud is just continuing the things he learned from Day & Co. in Columbus, and no one is surprised.