Beyond the two dozen Ohio State players who will participate in Senior Day, several Buckeye juniors with NFL draft decisions to make could also end up playing their final games at Ohio Stadium on Saturday.
The Ohio State junior with the most obvious NFL decision to make after this season is star receiver Garrett Wilson, who’s been widely projected as a first-round draft pick. His draft stock only increased this past weekend when he had the best game of his already excellent Ohio State career against Purdue, catching 10 passes for 126 yards and three touchdowns while also running for a 51-yard touchdown.
Going to the NFL after this season has always seemed like a likely move for Wilson, and he acknowledged Tuesday that he has thought about the possibility that this Saturday’s game against Michigan State could be the last time he plays in the Shoe.
“I’ve most definitely thought about it,” Wilson said. “It’s all came fast here. Doesn’t seem like I’ve been here as long as I have. But when you’re playing for a great program like Ohio State and playing at the highest level like you do and you’re one of the players involved in that, you’re gonna have the opportunity to make important decisions that are good decisions to make but hard ones.”
Wilson says he won’t make a final decision on his future until after the season, though, as his current focus is on finishing this season strong and trying to help lead the Buckeyes to a third straight College Football Playoff berth.
“I’ve put myself in a situation to where I have that tough decision to make, and it’s a blessing, but I’m trying to focus on finishing the season the right way,” Wilson said.
Even if he leaves Ohio State after three years, Wilson will rank among the Buckeyes’ all-time great receivers, especially if he keeps making big plays in their remaining games this season. Wilson already ranks 13th in Ohio State history in career receptions (126), 11th in career receiving yards (1,968) and tied for seventh in career touchdown receptions (20), and he’s only 187 yards away from becoming the seventh player in Ohio State history with 1,000 receiving yards in a single season.
As he reflected on his Ohio State career on Tuesday, Wilson said his time as a Buckeye to this point “has been everything I could have dreamed of and a lot more.”
“To be able to come out and have a role my freshman year was something I dreamed of my whole life,” Wilson said. “I got to figure out once I was here at a young time how I stacked up and if I could compete. So Ohio State’s put me in a great position. And it’s really been everything I ever dreamed of.”
While Wilson has been making plays for the Buckeyes since early in his freshman year in 2019, he’s taken his game to new heights this year, already setting career-highs with 53 catches, 813 yards and nine receiving touchdowns in just nine games. Ryan Day said Tuesday that he attributes that to the work Wilson put in during the offseason, and while Wilson is not in the NFL yet, Day said he’s already approaching his craft like a professional.
“His dedication with (director of sports performance Mickey Marotti) in the weight room and his work with (wide receivers coach Brian Hartline) in the meeting rooms, I think he’s just been a pro this year, and has really taken a big step in those areas of being a pro,” Day said. “Taking care of his body. He’s strong, he’s powerful. His football IQ has gone way up in the last year or two. I just think he’s really upgraded his game. He’s very, very competitive, always has been. He loves to play. But sometimes you can’t just go out there and play. You have to play within the offense. And I just think he’s taken a lot of strides in that area.”
Wilson says he has taken a different approach to his preparation this year because he felt like he could do more than he was already doing in his first two seasons at Ohio State.
“It’s something I really focused on this offseason just because I knew that I was doing a lot but I could do more. That was one of those tough conversations you have to have with yourself because you feel like you’re doing well, people tell you you’re doing well but you know deep inside that you can bring some more,” Wilson said. “So the way I’ve been approaching practice is that I gotta get better every day, be where I am, be where my two feet are, take advantage of every rep and I’ve seen it pay off on Saturdays. So hopefully that’s something that carries with me throughout the rest of my life.”
Wilson is far from the only Buckeye who will have an NFL decision to make after this season, but he was the only one who met with the media on Tuesday who directly addressed the possibility of playing his final game at Ohio Stadium this week.
Another junior who will have an NFL decision to make after this season is defensive end Zach Harrison, who’s also been projected as a potential early-round draft pick. When Harrison was asked about his future on Tuesday, however, Harrison smiled and responded in just five words, choosing to keep focus squarely upon what the Buckeyes are trying to accomplish this week.
“We’ve gotta beat Michigan State,” Harrison said.
