In February 2023, when he was still an Ohio State quarterback, C.J. attended a REFORM Alliance event with Kim Kardashian, then-Alabama quarterback Bryce Young, and Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin.

“Was blessed to be able to have a great dinner the other night to discuss and shine light on prison reform and our corrupt criminal justice system and how we can get things fixed,” he tweeted at the time. “Was able to explain my story and how the issue has [affected] my life and so many more families around the country.”

REFORM Alliance — which Rubin launched with Jay-Z, Meek Mill, and other founders in 2019 — seeks to “transform probation and parole by changing laws, systems, and culture to create real pathways to work and wellbeing,” according to its website.

“People slip up,” C.J. told The Columbus Dispatch in September 2022. “People make mistakes. As I’m getting older, I’m realizing how tough it is to be a man — not only a man, but a Black man in our communities.”

But the quarterback said he was thriving because he had an understanding “that doing the right thing is the right way and letting God lead your life is the best way.”

“That’s what I learned from my father,” he added.