The Ohio State football team is widely considered WRU, and the program’s former playmakers’ success is evident at the next level.

The Ohio State Buckeyes have produced some of the best wide receivers in the NFL as of late, and as the years go on, one could argue they produce the best NFL talent at the position. Ohio State wide receiver coach Brian Hartline has churned out NFL wideouts at a successfully alarming rate, and this doesn’t look like stopping with two potential lottery picks at the position next year.

Marvin Harrison Jr. and Emeka Egbuka are next in line, with Julian Fleming, Carnell Tate, Brandon Innis, and more waiting for their turn down the line as well. Let’s look at some former Buckeye wide receivers and how they are doing in the NFL after five weeks. 

The Second-Year Studs

Garrett Wilson and Chris Olave were college teammates, the first two receivers off the board in the 2022 NFL Draft, were back-to-back NFL picks, and were the best two rookie wide receivers in the league last year.

With Garrett Wilson losing his future hall of fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers, just a few snaps into the year, he is stuck with the young Zach Wilson throwing to him. Chris Olave is with a new quarterback in Derek Carr, who is not ideal but also someone he can work with.

Five weeks into the season, Olave is tied for second for the Buckeye-wide receiving lead in receptions and leads the alumni in receiving yards. He has 25 receptions for 318 receiving yards and a touchdown so far and started the season as fast as anyone. 

He finished with eight, six, and eight catches in his first three contests. He had 112, 86, and 104 receiving yards but did not find the endzone until week five against the Patriots. He has had just 16 total yards in the last two weeks, but this will not be a consistent number.

Garrett Wilson mirrors his former counterpart with 24 receptions, 279 receiving yards, and two touchdowns on the season. Wilson has been consistent, having at least five targets and 34 receiving yards in every game, and found the endzone the first two weeks of the year. He has a 68-yard touchdown against the stingy Dallas Cowboys defense.

Searching For More Production

Their former teammate, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, has yet to find the same rookie success they did after being drafted 20th overall in the 2023 NFL Draft by the Seattle Seahawks. He is working through the motions with two outstanding receivers ahead of him. Smith-Njigba has just 12 catches for 62 yards on the year, his best performance being his five-catch, 34-yard stat line against the Detroit Lions in week two. The team had a bye last week, and he should see an uptick in usage throughout his first season.

Parris Campbell is in his fifth season and first with the New York Giants after four seasons with the Indianapolis Colts. He has 16 catches this year but just 85 receiving yards. The Giants offense just has not been able to click, and while Campbell has a respectable number of catches, they are all short with no touchdowns. His best performance was six catches for 24 yards against the San Francisco 49ers in week three, and he will look to make some bigger plays the rest of the year.

Noah Brown is also in his first year with a new team. After spending five years in Dallas, he is now in Houston with former Buckeye CJ Stroud. He has three catches for 20 yards on the year, as he only played in week one against the Baltimore Ravens. C.J. Saunders is another name Buckeye fans may remember. He is on the Atlanta Falcons currently and has just two catches in his NFL career, but is another wideout on the next level.

Impacting the Game

Terry McLaurin is in his fifth season with the Washington Commanders, coming off three straight 1,000 seasons. He has 25 receptions, 261 yards, and a touchdown five weeks into the year. He is another consistent target. He has at least four targets and 31 yards in all five games. He had ten targets, eight catches, and 86 yards against the Philadelphia Eagles in week four. The only surprise his usage and numbers aren’t higher maybe his former Buckeye roommate Curtis Samuel.

Samuel started in Carolina for his first four seasons and moved to Washington in 2021, now in his third year with the team. After playing just five games his first year with Washington, he had much better production last year and seems to be on pace for career-best numbers with the team and maybe for his entire NFL career. He has 23 catches already, to go along with 243 receiving yards and a touchdown. In four of his five games, he has gone for 51 yards or more and has three games with five or more catches.

His best game was the most recent outing against the Chicago Bears, as he finished with seven targets, six catches, 65 yards, and a touchdown. He and McLaurin make the Commanders a fun team to cheer for and should make noise all season long.

Last is Michael Thomas, the 2019 NFL Offensive Player of the Year. He has spent his now seven-year career with the Saints and is paired with Olave in the receiving room. He leads Buckeye wideouts with 26 receptions thus far and has 284 yards receiving. The 30-year-old is the oldest wideout producing from Ohio State, has 50 yards in every game, and is due for six targets a game.

All nine Buckeye greats are making Ohio State fans proud and are showcasing why being a Buckeye means more.