The NFL playoffs kickoff this weekend and the Houston Texans are underdogs set to take on the Los Angeles Chargers.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Despite holding the AFC’s four-seed over the No. 5 placed Chargers, the Texans are seen as a -3.0 disadvantage. Houston quarterback CJ Stroud talked about his familiarity with being considered an underdog at the Texans’ press conference Tuesday.
“They said the same thing about us last year, playing the (Cleveland) Browns… and we went out there and did what we have to do to win,” Stroud said. “I like being the underdog. I’ve been the underdog a lot of my life and my career, so it’s actually comfortable to me.”
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The second pick in the 2023 NFL Draft behind Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young, Stroud is no stranger to being overlooked and knows when others are, too. In the same presser, Stroud payed homage to a group of underdogs from the 2024 College Football Playoff: The Arizona State Sun Devils.
After praising his team’s home state school Texas’ head coach Steve Sarkisian and quarterback Quinn Ewers for their run through the college football season, Stroud didn’t hesitate giving props to ASU and its do-it-all running back Cam Skattebo.
“It looked like (Texas) snuck away, but Arizona State is playing some good ball,” Stroud said.
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In attendance at the press conference was KPRC 2 Houston sports reporter Chancellor Johnson, who is graduate of ASU’s Walter Kronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication. The Arizona State alum didn’t flinch at the opportunity to show pride in his alma mater and a pitch for Skattebo in the upcoming draft.
“We got a runner,” Johnson said. “He should be a target (for the Texans in this year’s draft).”
Once Stroud recognized the Sun Devil in the room, he expounded on his praise for Skattebo and other ASU players.
“I like (Skattebo), that running back’s nice,” Stroud said. “The receiver, (Xavier Guillory), he’s a good player.”
If Skattebo wasn’t on the Texans’ radar before, his Chick-fil-a Peach Bowl performance certainly made him a candidate now.
Skattebo made his impact in all three facets of the offense, making pivotal contributions running, catching and passing the ball. He led all rushers with 30 carries for 143 yards for two touchdowns. His 8 catches for 99 yards, including a game-changing 62-yard catch he made through a defensive pass interference to setup a touchdown, led the team. And his lone 42-yard pass to senior wide receiver Malik McClain for a touchdown sparked the push of a potential comeback — almost single-handedly willing the Sun Devils to victory — in the 39-31 double-overtime loss to one of the best teams in college football.
Guillory finished the game with three catches for 19 yards, but was an essential piece to ASU’s Big 12 Championship victory over Iowa State, taking on the role of wide receiver No. 1 in place of redshirt sophomore wide receiver Jordyn Tyson, who missed the entire postseason with a collar bone injury.
Many people viewed Arizona State’s placement in the playoffs a waste of time and expressed their disinterest in a team that couldn’t compete with the likes of the B1G and SEC teams, coming from a weaker-deemed Big 12. After taking top five nationally ranked Texas down to the wire, Stroud and others can vouch that, that assessment was far from the truth.
Arizona State’s season ends in Peach Bowl: 3 takeaways from historic run
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Reporter Jordyn Bennett covers the Arizona Cardinals, Arizona State, Phoenix area sports and sports related topics. You can follow him on his X account, @j_bennett_live
