Unquestionably the best receiver in college football today, Ohio State's Marvin Harrison Jr. has a chance to etch his name atop a host of school records this season.
Looking to build off a 2022 season in which the Philadelphia native and son of NFL great Marvin Harrison Sr. racked up the fourth-most catches (77) and receiving yards (1,263) as well as the second-most touchdown grabs (14) for Ohio State in a single-season, the sky is the limit heading into the 2023 campaign.
His production, big-play ability, sticky hands and penchant for acrobatic catches combined to make him Ohio State's first ever unanimous All-American which is pretty amazing to think about when you consider the list of big time receivers to grace Ohio Stadium.
Marvin Harrison Jr. is the 37th unanimous All-American in Ohio State football history and the first Buckeye wide receiver to ever earn that honor. pic.twitter.com/1fzH8OzYrI
— Eleven Warriors (@11W) December 14, 2022
I must admit, I had a bit of hesitation putting proverbial pen to paper on this one after I did the same last fall, breaking down Jaxon Smith-Njigba's chances to set some new school marks, and we know how that turned out.
But at this point, the biggest threat against Harrison blowing up and having a legendary season is the fact the Buckeyes have yet to publicly identify a starting quarterback responsible for targeting the 6-foot-4 playmaker.
For his part, Ryan Day talked recently about trying to utilize Harrison more creatively, ensuring he's got the ball in his hands as much as reasonable.
“We were moving him around today, did a bunch of things with him. We want him to grow as well. Everybody kind of comes into spring with a different plan of what they want to get done. We don't want to just be the same old stuff for Marv. So we're going to try to build his tools and his package.”
And while Emeka Egbuka won't participate in spring drills, he's certainly a worthy sidekick which will give opponents pause about totally selling out to keep Marv in check.
So with the stage set for Harrison to have a huge 2023, here are a few school records within his reach.
FIRST OHIO STATE RECEIVER TO POST TWO 1,000-YARD SEASONS
JSN had a chance to do this last year after his monster 1,606 receiving yards in 2021 but obviously an injury suffered in the first half of the season opener put that notion to bed.
Before Smith-Njigba, only Michael Jenkins was back for another crack at a 1,000 after doing so the previous season. After posting 1,076 receiving yards during Ohio State's national championship season in 2002, Jenkins made a bid for back-to-back 1,000-yard campaigns but finished with 834 yards in 2003. It's worth noting Jenkins just missed reaching 1,000 in 2001 when he tallied 988 receiving yards.
Harrison enters this fall as just the third Buckeye with a 1,000-yard receiving season under his belt to return to the scarlet and gray for another run. Provided he stays healthy, the noted variables like a starting quarterback proving solid and the offensive line coming together will factor into whether Harrison can become the first Buckeye receiver to churn out two 1,000-yard receiving seasons in Columbus.
CAREER RECEIVING YARDS
As you might've guessed based on the commentary above, Jenkins is still Ohio State's career receiving yards leader with 2,898 from 2001-03.
Harrison clocks in at 1,402 career receiving yards-to-date after logging 139 yards in 2021 followed by last year's 1,263. That means to pass Jenkins he'll need at least 1,497 receiving yards this fall.
That's a tall order as a 1,497-yard season would be the second-most all-time at Ohio State but certainly not impossible particularly if the Buckeyes can reach the Big Ten title game and play in a couple CFP games.
CAREER 100-YARD RECEIVING GAMES
David Boston owns Ohio State's current record for career 100-yard receiving games with 14 from 1996-98. He also holds the mark for most 100-yard receiving games in a single-season with nine in '98.
Harrison is currently tied for 5th-place with seven career 100-yard outings, all seven of which came last fall. Shoutout to Marvin as he went for over 100 yards against three of the four ranked opponents Ohio State faced including a career-best 185-yard day against Penn State.
If he can rack up another seven 100-yard games this season, he'll tie Boston for the career mark.
CONSECUTIVE 100-YARD RECEIVING GAMES
Cris Carter held the record record with five consecutive 100-yard games all by his lonesome from 1986 until the 2021 season with Jaxon Smith-Njigba tied the mark as part of his historical five-game stretch to finish out that season, capped by a 347-yard night in the Rose Bowl. (Before those five, he had 97 yards, 99 yards and 103 yards meaning he was just four combined yards away versus Penn State and Indiana from logging eight straight 100-yard performances.)
Harrison is currently riding a modest two-game streak but this one is worth mentioning for two reasons. One, he's Marvin Harrison. Two, Ohio State opens with Indiana, Youngstown State and Western Kentucky.
Yeah that first one is a Big Ten opener on the road with a new starting quarterback and a rebuilt offensive line but Indiana ranked No. 120 out of 131 teams in pass defense last year giving up 274 yards per game.
MOST CAREER GAMES WITH THREE (OR MORE) TOUCHDOWN CATCHES
After recording three touchdown catches against Utah in the 2022 Rose Bowl and three more against Arkansas State in game two of the 2022 season, Harrison tied Joey Galloway's school record for career games with at least three touchdown snags.
Harrison then set a new standard four games later with another three touchdown grabs during a 49-20 victory in East Lansing. You might remember his third one that day.
Marvin Harrison Jr. defies logic.pic.twitter.com/3kTWxEcAyj
— Eleven Warriors (@11W) October 8, 2022
With his big play ability, it wouldn't be shocking to see Harrison stack another game or two on this record.
CAREER RECEIVING TOUCHDOWNS
Chris Olave owns the school record here with 35 career touchdown catches from 2018-21.
It would be a stretch for Harrison to catch him but not impossible. Despite just one year as a legit starter under his belt, Harrison has 17 career touchdowns to date by way of those three against Utah in the Rose Bowl as a freshman and then another 14 last year in his sophomore campaign.
To tie Olave, he'll obviously need 18 touchdown grabs this year. That's a tall order as doing so would also break Terry Glenn's single-season touchdown receptions mark of 17 set back in 1995.
