Cade Stover (born June 12, 2000) is an American football tight end for the Houston Texans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Ohio State, and was selected by the Texans in the fourth round of the 2024 NFL draft.
Early life and high school career[]
Stover grew up in Mansfield, Ohio and attended Lexington High School. He was named Ohio's Mr. Football and the Ohio Gatorade Player of the Year as a senior after rushing for 1,477 yards and 17 touchdowns on offense and recording 163 tackles and four interceptions on defense. Stover also set Lexington's all-time scoring record in basketball. He was rated a four-star recruit and committed to play college football at Ohio State over offers from Michigan, Oklahoma, Penn State, Texas, and Wisconsin.
College career[]
Stover was initially recruited to play linebacker at Ohio State, but was moved to defensive end before the start of his freshman season. He played in four games before redshirting the season. Stover was moved to tight end during spring practice in 2020. He returned back to linebacker during the season. Stover was again moved to tight end for his redshirt junior season and caught five passes for 76 yards. He played linebacker in the 2022 Rose Bowl due to a shortage of players at the position. In 2023, Stover was one of three finalists for the Mackey Award which is awarded to the nation's best tight end.
Professional career[]
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Vertical jump | Broad jump | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 3+7⁄8 in
(1.93 m) |
247 lb
(112 kg) |
32+3⁄4 in
(0.83 m) |
9+3⁄4 in
(0.25 m) |
4.65 s | 1.59 s | 2.72 s | 4.45 s | 34.5 in
(0.88 m) |
9 ft 9 in
(2.97 m) | |||
| All values from NFL Combine | ||||||||||||
Stover was selected with the 123rd overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft by the Houston Texans.