OSU wide receivers: “Zone six versus everybody”

It’s no secret that Ohio State is loaded at wideout this year.

The Buckeyes return not only junior Garrett Wilson – who has dazzled fans, coaches, players and NFL scouts with his amazing ability to run routes and locate the ball above confused defensive backs’ heads – but they also return senior Chris Olave, whom most thought was going to take his talents to the next level after an eye-popping first three seasons.

And with all of the young talent not only returning but coming in, this could be a year where the Ohio State wide receiver room, known as Zone Six, could do some psychological damage to opposing secondaries this year.

“We have such a good brotherhood here, especially in the wide receiver room. It’s Zone Six versus everybody,” said receiver Julian Fleming. “Everyone hypes each other up when someone makes a play.”

The true sophomore said they support one another and there is no animosity for playing time.

“We all just root for each other and everyone is excited to get their opportunities and capitalize off of everything they can.”

No other FBS college football team in the entire country can brag that they’ve placed more than one guy at the position on this year’s preseason lists.

Olave racked up at least six national publications’ first-team preseason honors while Wilson was nominated for at least four second-team nods and one first-team (Pro Football Focus). And they both come in with the second (729) and third-most (723) receiving yards in the conference last year.

Wilson said they are so deep, even their walk-ons are better than anyone else.

“It’s probably not like this nowhere else,” he said. “It’s honestly ridiculous when you see Emeka, Marvin and J.B. (Jayden Ballard) what they can do. And we got dudes like Sam Wiglusz who’s a walk-on and he’s as good as anyone in the country.”

The Scarlet and Gray return super sophomores like Fleming and Jaxon Smith-Njibga, who were highly touted incoming freshman last year. According to 247Sports’ composite rankings, Fleming was listed as not only the No. 1 wide receiver in the country but the No. 3 overall recruit while Smith-Njigba was rated as the nation’s No. 5 receiver and 29th-rated recruit.

Then there are the freshmen phenoms in Emeka Egbuka, Jayden Ballard and Marvin Harrison, Jr., the latter of course being the namesake of Super Bowl champion and Pro Football Hall of Fame wideout Marvin Harrison, Sr.

Egbuka was the state of Washington’s Gatorade Player of the Year and the nation’s No. 1 receiver and No. 10 overall recruit. Harrison was a four-star recruit out of St. Joseph’s Prep (Philadelphia) High School, helping them to three-straight 6A state championships while setting the city’s Catholic League receiving yards (2,625) and touchdowns (37) records along the way. Ballard comes in as the country’s eighth-rated receiver and ranks as Massillon (Ohio) Washington High School’s all-time career receiving yards leader (2,737) ahead of former Buckeyes like Devin Jordan (2,503) and Devin Smith (2,119), who are second and third, respectively.

Former Buckeye standout, NFL receiver and current receivers coach Brian Hartline said this year’s freshman group of receivers have benefitted from a year of spring ball and a full fall camp that last year’s receivers weren’t able to take advantage of.

“No one shows up ready to go, I promise you that,” said Hartline. “I would say that they’ve all continued to grow. We (the coaching staff) just talked about the group last year missing out on spring ball and that precious development and all three of them … are glaring examples of how much time you can make up through spring and through the summer. That being said, Chris Olave came in in June and he still had an impact as a true freshman. It’s not a cookie cutter process. Everyone has their own paths but obviously time on task is very valuable and I would say everyone in the room has absolutely maximized that. So from a growth perspective, everyone has grown exponentially the last six months.”

Let’s not forget about the “other” receivers out there catching rockets from the signal caller. Like Jeremy Ruckert at tight end, a guy who a lot of folks in Buckeye Nation thought was going to take his incredible talents to the draft but decided to stick around for one more year and another shot at a championship.

Technically, Ruckert doesn’t belong to Zone Six but not mentioning him as a go-to threat seems blasphemous. There is no doubt that he’s likely going to be one of quarterback C.J. Stroud’s several favorite targets this year, who was named the starter by head coach Ryan Day on Saturday, Aug. 21.

Not to mention guys like Gee Scott, Jr., Jayden Ballard, Cade Stover, Xavier Johnson and Kamryn Babb, who was named a captain by the team last Friday. Those dudes themselves have a plethora of talent and experience that will undoubtedly provide solid support either on the practice field or in game situations.

Suffice it to say, the Ohio State football team should be very dangerous through the air this year.

Hartline said the zone has come together and a guy like Wilson embodies the spirit of any good wideout who can play just about any position on the field.

“You don’t have to be, like, a slash player,” said Hartline. “It’s just about being a great receiver and getting the best three guys in advantageous positions. Because at the end of the day, if you turn around and go 12-personnel or you’re in a bigger set, then those guys that are ‘outside guys’ become ‘inside guys’ and you’re pigeon-holed into a certain spot and you’re not that great of a receiver. You might be a good football player but being multi-versed and being multi-faceted is what we strive to become and Garrett embodies that.”

And putting the best three guys on the field has meant moving them around a little bit.

Wilson has primarily been in the slot when he’s joined with at least one other receiver on the field. However in this year’s camp, he’s seen himself on the outside when going to at least a three-receiver set with Smith-Njigba typically being the third wideout.

Wilson said that their willingness to play at positions they aren’t generally used to speaks to how dedicated they are to bringing home college football’s most coveted hardware.

“This year it’s about team success,” he said. “We’ve had that with the Big Ten championships and the semifinal last year but we want to take that next step and get to the national championship and bring it home.”

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