Ohio State Football Stars Point to Jesus, Saying Only Christ Brings True Peace
A trio of Ohio State star football players are speaking out about their Christian faith, saying it's given them peace and joy as they've navigated the ups and downs of college football life. They emphasize that only Jesus provides true fulfillment.
"When I met Jesus, He filled me with the love that I'd been looking for in football and money and my family and women," running back TreVeyon Henderson said. "He gave me the joy that I searched for. …He rescued me."
Henderson, wide receiver Emeka Egbuka, and tight end Gee Scott. Jr., all spoke with Sports Spectrum in recent days as they navigated the College Football Playoff on their way to the national championship game Monday night against Notre Dame.
Henderson has 11 touchdowns and 967 rushing yards this season as the Buckeyes' starting running back.
"After my injury my sophomore year, I made that decision to give my life to the Lord," Henderson said. "He changed my life. The power of His blood washed away all my sins and all the shame and guilt that I've been feeling over the years."
Jesus, he said, turned him away from the "false idols I was serving."
Egbuka has 10 touchdowns and 947 receiving yards. His faith began growing, he said, after two friends invited him to church during his sophomore year.
"I experienced the Holy Spirit [for] the first time like I've never experienced before," Egbuka told Sports Spectrum. "And ever since then, my life has been changed a complete 180, and I have a similar testimony to a lot of players on the team. We've been praying for a type of revival like this on our team, and we decided to share with everybody what God has been doing on our football team."
That spiritual outpouring was seen on the Ohio State campus during the fall when hundreds of students gathered for a worship service led by football players, during which about 60 students were baptized.
Egbuka passed up the NFL draft to play another season at Ohio State.
"I felt the Lord kind of asking me a question, testing my heart, like, 'If you do come back for this next year, you're going to have this massive platform,'" he said. "… So that was just one of my prayers, just to be bolder this year with my faith, be more outspoken about it."
Scott has a pair of touchdowns and 249 receiving yards. He has been a key element in Ohio State's run blocking.
"I write on my eye black every game, Romans 8:28: that we know all things work together for the good of those who love the Lord," Scott said. "You know, ridicule me or be mad at me on the outside, but I have the faith that all of these things that I'm going through are working together to refine me and make me a better version of myself. And so having faith through that gives me freeing peace while I play that I'm not here to perform for a man, or for fans, or analysts or whatever. I'm just here to serve Christ."
The modern world, Scott said, includes many distractions but "there's no true fulfillment that's found outside of Christ."
"There can be happy moments," Scott said. "You can do things that are fulfilling to the flesh and that are fun in the moment, but I think ultimately it doesn't lead to a place of true and sincere fulfillment."
WATCH: Ohio State Football Players Share about the Importance of Their Faith in Jesus Christ
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Michael Foust has covered the intersection of faith and news for 20 years. His stories have appeared in Baptist Press, Christianity Today, The Christian Post, the Leaf-Chronicle, the Toronto Star and the Knoxville News-Sentinel.
Listen to Michael's Podcast! He is the host of Crosswalk Talk, a podcast where he talks with Christian movie stars, musicians, directors, and more. Hear how famous Christian figures keep their faith a priority in Hollywood and discover the best Christian movies, books, television, and other entertainment. You can find Crosswalk Talk on LifeAudio.com, or subscribe on Apple or Spotify so you never miss an interview that will be sure to encourage your faith.
Originally published January 16, 2025.
