C.J. Stroud family tree: What we know about incarcerated father, inspirational mom, mentor 'Coach Fly' & more

JUMP TO: 

• C.J. Stroud dad: Coleridge Bernard Stroud III
• C.J. Stroud mom: Kimberly Stroud
• C.J. Stroud brothers
• C.J. Stroud sister: Cieara Stroud
• C.J. Stroud mentor: 'Coach Fly' Priest Brooks
• Where is C.J. Stroud from?

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Since his days as a Buckeye, C.J. Stroud has been on a path to stardom.

The former Ohio State quarterback, who was the Big Ten team's starting passer in 2021 and 2022, took his talents to the NFL for the 2022 draft and never looked back. After being selected by the Texans, Stroud became an elite AFC quarterback quickly, earning himself Offensive Rookie of the Year honors.

Along Stroud's football journey, he's had a group of family members supporting him ever since he played high school ball in southern California.

Here's are the details on Stroud's family, including his father's 2016 incarceration, his siblings and more.

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C.J. Stroud dad: Coleridge Bernard Stroud III

Stroud's father is Coleridge Bernard Stroud III. Stroud's father is a former pastor of Life Application Christian Center in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. It was a church that he and his wife, Kimberly, helped build, and C.J. was often involved in his father's sermons growing up.

“C.J. and Ciara, my younger two, that’s all they knew was church. We went to church several times a week,” Kimberly Stroud told Fox Sports in November 2022. “We dedicated a lot of our time to volunteering in our neighborhood, in our community. So my children spent a lot of time being selfless and knowing there’s a lot, there’s a big world out there, and you’re not the whole world."

Coleridge Stroud appeared on the "Between The Lines" podcast in December 2024, sharing stories from C.J.'s childhood, including him wearing No. 7 because of Michael Vick.

"I told him from a child, 'Don't ever change that number,'" he said. 

Prior to his father's incarceration, C.J. said his dad was his "best friend," which made it "tough" when he went to prison.

“When I talk to him now, I don’t hold [any] ill will. I tell him ‘I love you man,’” C.J. told The Pivot Podcast in 2022. “At the end of the day, you made your mistakes and I made mine.”

Why is C.J. Stroud's dad in jail? 

In 2016, Stroud's father, Coleridge Bernard Stroud III, received a 38-years-to-life sentence after pleading guilty to carjacking, kidnapping, robbery and misdemeanor sexual battery as the result of a drugs-related incident. C.J. was in middle school when his father was first incarcerated.

Coleridge Stroud III has been serving his sentence at Folsom State Prison, which is near Sacramento.

According to reports, on April 12, 2015, police arrested Coleridge Stroud III in downtown San Diego after he allegedly forced himself inside a woman's vehicle. She was waiting in traffic at a stoplight when he jumped into the car, demanding that she drive to a location where he could purchase drugs. 

The woman escaped, but she alleged that she had been assaulted by Stroud. San Diego Harbor police chased him down until he crashed the car into a pole and as a result, he hopped into the San Diego Bay in an attempt to evade police.

That was not Stroud's first run-in with police. He had three previous convictions for possession of illegal drugs, receiving stolen property, armed robbery and attempted second-degree robbery. 

The elder Stroud won't be eligible for parole until 2040, when he'll be 74 years old. According to Sports Illustrated, at his 2018 appeal, Coleridge Stroud said that he spent nearly 20 years sober, but following his 2012 divorce, his "life spun out of control again and he began using illegal drugs again."

When he was arrested in 2015, the rest of the Stroud family was put into "financial ruin." According to CNN, the family lived in a "small apartment above a storage unit" with a single mother taking care of the children. Stroud's mother also said the difficulties forced a young C.J. to mature quickly.

"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."

Because he's been incarcerated since 2016, Stroud's father has never been able to attend any of his son's college or NFL games. Stroud has spoken out about prison reform in the past. During the 2024 NFL season, he spoke about his father's incarceration.

"That's what I've been battling with, trying to still be a family man ... and still be a football player and do my job," Stroud said. "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."

C.J. Stroud has also said that what his father is going through "is not right."

"I didn't want to make this public, but our criminal justice isn't right," Stroud said in 2023. "It's something that I probably need to be a little more vocal about, because what he's going through is not right. It's not just my dad's situation, the whole criminal justice system is corrupt. I've been watching videos. In Mississippi, some of the prisons have rats and roaches and things like that.

"Don't get me wrong: Criminals should do their time, and everything should be like that. But they're still humans. I just wanted to shine a light on that real quick."

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

Later on, Stroud followed up and said that his father asked him not to speak on criminal justice issues and instead just "focus on ball," but the quarterback wanted to use his platform to speak on the issue.

"For me, I honestly just wanted to shine a light, not only on my dad's situation, but what's going on in our criminal justice system. I've even learned more through working with REFORM. I've had a couple of dinners and conversations with those guys," Stroud said. "It's easy to be vocal when you have other guys doing the same thing. It's not just me out here trying to push the envelope.

"For me, I always wanted to shine light on that. My dad actually asked me not to. He always wanted me to focus on ball. I honestly did it just to shine light on it, not just for his situation but for the whole thing."

CJ Stroud on the response he’s gotten from the public/media since making the comments about the criminal justice system this past Sunday #Texans pic.twitter.com/g9Yi8WY6wl

— Shaun Bijani (@ShaunBijani) November 8, 2023

In 2023, Stroud, who has worked with the organization REFORM Alliance in the past, also wore custom cleats that called for prison reform and read "Free Pops."

C.J. Stroud's father is currently serving a 38-year prison sentence. pic.twitter.com/ZuTWgBmhY4

— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) December 3, 2023

MORE: Why is C.J. Stroud's dad in prison? Texans QB is calling for criminal justice reform

C.J. Stroud mom: Kimberly Stroud

Stroud's mother is Kimberly Stroud. She and Coleridge Stroud got married in 1997 and had four children together prior to their 2012 divorce.

Following Coleridge's incarceration, Kimberly raised her children as a single mother while working as a property manager for a storage facility. She told ESPN in 2023 that C.J. never complained about their financial situation growing up, telling her that "you're not gonna have to do this forever."

Prior to being drafted in 2023, Stroud praised his mother's hard work in his youth.

“My mom, she had to play both roles for me for a while; mother and father,” C.J. said in April 2023. “I’m super blessed to have a mother like I do.”

— NFL Network (@nflnetwork) April 27, 2023

In November 2023, C.J., Kimberly and the rest of the Stroud family launched the "C.J. Stroud Foundation," a nonprofit that focuses on "servicing communities with the love of Christ through charity work." The organization also specifically focuses on aiding single mothers, which is "inspired by C.J. Stroud’s own mother and the struggles she endured while raising him and his siblings as a low income single mother."

C.J. initially wanted to name it "The Stroud Family Foundation,” but Kimberly insisted that it be named after the star quarterback.

“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.”

While the two no longer produce the podcast, Kimberly and Monica Daniels, the mother of another NFL player and Stroud's former Ohio State teammate, Paris Johnson Jr., collaborated on "The Mom’s POV Show" for some time. The podcast focused on parenting a professional athlete.

Kimberly often appears in support at Texans games:

Family ❤️💙 pic.twitter.com/K6qwCA6E5q

— NFL (@NFL) January 13, 2024

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C.J. Stroud brothers

C.J. is the youngest of four siblings, including two older brothers.

Isaiah Stroud

Isaiah Stroud is the oldest of the four siblings. According to Sports Illustrated, he is seven years older than C..J.

However, not much other information is known about Isaiah. 

Asmar Stroud

C.J.'s other older brother is Asmar Stroud, who is six years older than him. 

Otherwise, there is not much information known about Asmar.

C.J. Stroud sister: Cieara Stroud

Stroud's older sister is Cieara Stroud. She is three years older than the quarterback

She was spotted in attendance with their mother at C.J.'s draft day in 2023:

family ties ❤️
@CJ7STROUD | #NFLDraft pic.twitter.com/VIdLS0bxYN

— Ohio State Football (@OhioStateFB) April 27, 2023

Ciara said on her mother's podcast in January 2025 that she "loves being a sister" and she was always giving her brothers dating advice.

In January 2025, C.J. Stroud was also seen praying with his mother and sister before a game

Cieara Stroud also makes music, which can be found on Spotify, and she released a music video in 2022 for a song called "Push Up On Me."

She also announced via her Instagram in March 2025 that she's expecting a baby girl.

MORE: Complete list of Super Bowl MVP winners through the years

C.J. Stroud mentor: 'Coach Fly' Priest Brooks

Priest Brooks, a rapper and producer with Death Row Records known as "Soopafly" in the 1990s that often worked with Snoop Dogg, became a mentor to a young Stroud when he was a coach in Snoop Dogg's youth football league.

Over time, Brooks became a leading figure in Stroud's youth, from him hanging out with friends at "Coach Fly's" house or developing his football skills at Snoop Dogg's camp.

Snoop Dogg youth football league

In 2014, Brooks was coaching the Pomona Steelers in the "Snoop Youth Football League" when he came across a 12-year-old C.J. Stroud. An ESPN story in 2024 detailed how Brooks had heard of Stroud and how the young passer was seeking a new youth league, so Brooks invited him and his family to a practice.

Initially, Stroud's mother, Kimberly, was "skeptical" about a youth league being run by Snoop Dogg, but she then realized how "professional" it was with "great people."

Very quickly, Stroud grew into one of the best passers at the camp, while Brooks, who was referred to as "Coach Fly," stepped up for the Stroud family in a tough time as C.J.'s father went to prison. 

The league, which was created in 2005, allowed kids between ages 5-13 to play summer football, including a playoff bracket and the "Snooper Bowl."

"Kids in other communities didn't have football that met the prices that their mothers could afford," Snoop Dogg told ESPN in 2024 about the league. "At the same time opening up to other kids as well. But the initial thought was to help out the urban inner-city and give them opportunities to play."

Stroud's initial years of organized football came in the league, and after he led his teams in the summer camp behind "Coach Fly," the two grew closer, including Brooks making sure Stroud had uniforms, waiving league fees, etc.

"Coach Fly is such an amazing person," Kimberly Stroud told ESPN. "He was so instrumental for C.J. during the harder years of his adolescence — when Dad wasn't there anymore, when Mom was working long days."

Brooks was in attendance when Stroud got drafted in 2023. Some video has been released from Stroud's days at Snoop Dogg's youth camp:

Throwback to when @SnoopDogg revealed that CJ Stroud came up playing in his youth football league 😮 pic.twitter.com/XQvXBdNiqO

— NFL Films (@NFLFilms) January 19, 2024

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Where is C.J. Stroud from?

C.J. Stroud is from Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. It is around 37 miles south of downtown Los Angeles, and Stroud later attended Rancho Cucamonga High School before he committed to Ohio State.

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