Houston Texans QB C.J. Stroud is largely considered a shoo-in for Offensive Rookie of the Year honors. In fact, he’s presently got -1,000 odds to take home the award, according to the New York Post.
Stroud finished his first pro season with a 64% completion percentage, 4,108 yards, 23 touchdowns, and just five interceptions. He’s among a small handful of prominent passers, including Cam Newton, Andrew Luck, and Justin Herbert, who broke 4,000 yards and 20 passing scores in their rookie seasons.
Stroud also led the Texans to a 10-7 record and their first AFC South championship and playoff appearance since 2019.
C.J. Stroud’s Parents: Kimberly and Coleridge Bernard Stroud III
Texans fans will certainly be rooting for the budding star to lead his club to the sixth playoff victory in franchise history. So too will Stroud’s parents, Kimberly and Coleridge Bernard Stroud III — even if the latter will be doing so from behind bars.
Stroud’s father, Coleridge Bernard Stroud III, has been incarcerated since C.J. was in middle school after incurring a laundry list of charges from an incident in 2015.
According to Sporting News, he’s presently serving a 38-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to several offenses, including carjacking, kidnapping, robbery, and misdemeanor sexual battery.
Per reports, the crimes of the elder Stroud occurred in San Diego back in April 2015. He reportedly forced his way into a woman’s stopped vehicle at a traffic light and demanded she drive him somewhere to purchase drugs. The woman eventually escaped, but she reported the assault to the police. Stroud added to his troubles when the police arrived by fleeing from them in the stolen vehicle.
That wasn’t the first time Stroud dealt with legal issues in his life. He also faced several prior convictions in the ’90s for a variety of crimes, including drug possession, receiving stolen property, and armed robbery. He’s presently housed at Folsom State Prison in California and won’t be eligible for parole until 2040.
C.J.’s personal experiences have made the subject of criminal justice reform one of the quarterback’s passions. That much is exhibited in the interview clip below.
What shouldn’t get lost in CJ Stroud’s historic day was when asked about breaking the record he mentioned being a family man and talked about the criminal justice system involving his dad. pic.twitter.com/z6RzS5N7R5
— DJ Bien-Aime (@Djbienaime) November 6, 2023
Still, Stroud’s father shouldn’t only be defined by his mistakes. He was a humongous influence during C.J.’s formative years — he was a pastor for many years, according to People. His son has made his stance on his father’s prison reformation very clear after a Week 9 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
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“I got to talk to my dad a little bit this week. I’m praying to God that something can happen, that he can get out and come to one of these games. I’ve been praying for him a lot.”
Coleridge and his then-wife, Kimberly, helped to build a church, the Life Application Christian Center, in Rancho Cucamonga, California. During a 2018 appeal, Coleridge described himself as someone who’d “spent nearly 20 years as a successful businessman, pastor, homeowner, husband, and father.”
The remorseful Coleridge said that when Kimberly filed for divorce in 2012, his “life spun out of control again, and he began using illegal drugs again after more than 20 years of sobriety.”
The separation and Coleridge’s resulting legal issues left the family in financial ruin. Scraping by to avoid homelessness, it also forcibly accelerated then-13-year-old C.J.’s maturation.
“He had a choice when his father went away,” Stroud’s mother said. “He was going to let that motivate him and be the best, or he was going to succumb to it and become a statistic of a kid whose parent did something they shouldn’t.
“I sit, and I’m amazed at how resilient he is. C.J. is the most amazing human I have ever met,” she said.
To her credit, Kimberly jumped into duty when the situation called for it. The single mother of four took a job as a property manager for a storage facility to provide for C.J. and his siblings. Her resolve gave Houston’s star QB something to strive for — a better life for his mother.
ESPN recently shared an anecdote from Stroud’s youth, which serves as a testament to both the mom’s work ethic and her son’s consideration.
C.J. had outgrown his cleats but continued to play in his undersized footwear. Kimberly asked him why he didn’t say something when she saw the blisters on his feet. Stroud provided a surprising answer.
“I don’t wanna bother you, Mom, ’cause I see how hard you work,” he told her.
He’d go on to profess his determination to help provide a better life for his mother.
“Mama, you’re not gonna have to do this forever. I just want you to know that.”
Nowadays, mother and son have teamed up to help others in need. Kimberly is president of the C.J. Stroud Foundation, which launched in November 2023. Their first order of business was providing dozens of Thanksgiving dinners, clothing, and other winter essentials to Houston-area families in need — especially those helmed by single mothers.
The QB had initially wanted to name their organization “The Stroud Family Foundation,” but his mom convinced him to put his name out front. The gesture, and the explanation she provided, are both strong testaments to how proud she is of the young man her son has become.
“I told him, ‘It’s not what it’s named, but what it stands for,’” Kimberly told WSYX. “We’re building a legacy within the community. When people see your name, they’ll know that you not only care about football but also about them.”
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