Ohio State WR Marvin Harrison Jr. A 99 Overall In New College Football Video Game?
Excitement is building, not just for the upcoming college football season which the Ohio State Buckeyes open in less than 100 days but for EA Sports' new NCAA Football video game set to release in summer 2024.
There are two big questions always associated with the Madden franchise ahead of the annual release: who will be on the cover and who are the 99 overalls? In each football video game, a player is given a rating from 0-100 based on their overall abilities while being given the same numerical rankings on a variety of attributes like speed, agility, strength, throw power and trucking ability, among others.
Pro Football Focus' Max Chadwick speculated on who the 99 overalls for the upcoming season would be if the game were to be released in July like it was originally supposed to. Ohio State wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. was one of five players to earn a 99 overall, according to Chadwick, joining USC quarterback Caleb Williams, Michigan running back Blake Corum, Georgia tight end Brock Bowers and Notre Dame offensive tackle Joe Alt.
"Hall of Famer Marvin Harrison’s son is easily the best receiver in college football. He was both the highest-graded and most valuable receiver in the country this past season, according to PFF’s wins above-average metric," Chadwick said. "Against single-coverage, the sophomore’s 878 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns led all FBS wide receivers. At 6-foot-4 and 205 pounds, Harrison is a freak athlete who’s no stranger to making impossible catches look routine."
Chadwick named Harrison's best attribute his ability to make spectacular catches, something he put on display last year in Columbus.
Against Michigan State, Harrison jumped over defensive back Charles Brantley and caught a touchdown over his back, while against Indiana he caught a pass along the sidelines with his entire body out of bounds before planting his right foot back in bounds and contorting his leg in the process. Against Iowa, Harrison made a diving fingertip grab as well.
According to PFF, Harrison's receiving grade and receiving grade against zone coverage were both in the 99th percentile, his receiving grade against man coverage was in the 98th percentile, yards run per route in the 97th and contested catch rate in the 80th.
The Heisman Trophy contender and projected top-five pick in the 2024 NFL Draft needs 114 receptions, 1,497 yards and 19 touchdowns to have the clean sweep of career program records.
With the potential to link back up with his high school teammate, quarterback Kyle McCord, those records aren't out of the question to be broken, but Harrison would have to have the greatest single receiving season in Ohio State history with another top-five receiver in college football on the other side of the field.
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