Buckeyes Best WR? Don't Sleep On Emeka Egbuka
The Ohio State Buckeyes football program boasts one of the best young wide receivers in the country. But not the one you're thinking of. After being one of the top-ranked wideouts in his recruiting class and a top-10 prospect in the country, Emeka Egbuka has been barely talked about this spring.
Granted, he's been largely unavailable due to surgery, but for the most part, he's been in the shadow of other players since arriving in Columbus in 2021.
The Buckeyes have been stacked at the position for a while, so it's easy for even the best young player to get lost behind juniors and seniors, and Egbuka has been behind some good ones. Last season, the injury to Jaxon Smith-Njigba opened the door ever so slightly for Egbuka to display his abilities as a sophomore.
But the biggest shadow cast on Egbuka has been by Marvin Harrison Jr., who ranked 20 spots below Egbuka in the recruiting class. But as the son of a Pro Football Hall of Famer, Harrison Jr. shined as the star in 2022.
Harrison Jr. led the Buckeyes in receptions (77), receiving yards (1,263) and receiving touchdowns (14), finishing in the top 20 nationally in all three categories.
Egbuka was close behind, with 74 passes for 1,151 yards and 10 touchdowns, also making him a top-20 receiver nationally last season. He also finished the season with nine games with a touchdown - one more than Harrision Jr. - but had just one multi-touchdown game to Harrison Jr.'s four.
This season the two could be more evenly matched with quarterback C.J. Stroud moving on to the NFL. There will be a new signal caller under center, and Egbuka could see a few more targets.
While Harrison Jr. gets most of the accolades as a top wideout in the country, Egbuka isn't far behind. You just don't hear his name nearly often enough in the conversation. That could change in 2023.
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