Ohio State’s top-four, and five of its top-six, receivers from last season will not be back on the field for the Buckeyes in the fall of 2016. Whether it was due to early entrees or a senior departing, Ohio State has a ton of pass catchers to replace.
This isn’t a surprise, of course, as there is turnover all over the Buckeyes’ roster following the mass exodus that occurred after the 2015 season. But that doesn't mean things are any easier on quarterback J.T. Barrett as Ohio State prepares to open spring practice Tuesday.
Curtis Samuel is the only guy returning for the Buckeyes who was in the top-six in receptions last season. And as things stand right now, it’s unsure where Samuel is going to play in 2016. He can continue as wide receiver where he spent the majority of his time last season, but it’s also possible he returns to running back, where he was primarily used during his freshman season when Ohio State went on to win the national championship. He could potentially play both.
Even with Michael Thomas, Jalin Marshall and Braxton Miller all gone, the Buckeyes still fell they have a No. 1 option at wide receiver in Noah Brown, who missed all of last season due to a broken leg suffered in fall camp. Brown was wowing coaches and teammates and was expected to be a major contributor last season prior to suffering his injury.
The Buckeyes will also get Corey Smith back as he was granted a sixth year of eligibility by the NCAA, coach Urban Meyer announced, after he, like Brown, had his season ended due to a broken leg suffered in Ohio State’s win over Indiana. Smith was a solid contributor out wide in the 2014 campaign, but only had five catches last season before suffering the injury.
As things stand right now Brown, Samuel and Smith are expected to be the three primary pass catchers for Barrett next season, but all three will be limited — our out — during spring practice. Brown and Smith are continuing to recover from their injuries, while Samuel is also coming off foot surgery he underwent in January.
What that means is Barrett will be working with a plethora of young guys this spring, all of whom will be battling for playing time.
The “old guys” at wide receiver who will be seeing a lot of work this spring are Dontre Wilson and Parris Campbell. Wilson is a senior H-receiver who hasn’t exactly lived up to the hype he had coming in as a highly-touted recruit and that has, in part, been due to lingering injuries the last two seasons. The same can be said for Campbell, a redshirt sophomore, who started for Ohio State in last year’s season-opener, but was hampered all year due to nagging injuries. This is a big spring for both.
Guys like Terry McLaurin, James Clark and Johnnie Dixon fall into the next tier. All three have been around the program for a few years now but none have made a major impact on the field. Dixon has been hampered by knee issues for two seasons and it’s unclear how healthy he’ll be in spring. McLaurin has been a solid special teams contributor and could use this spring as a breakthrough to earn some time at wideout. Clark saw minimal action at wide receiver this year, but has the speed to be a potential playmaker.
The younger group is perhaps the most intriguing one for this spring, though.
None of the following guys — K.J. Hill, Torrance Gibson and Austin Mack — have played before, but all have the potential to make big impacts in 2016. Hill, Gibson and Alex Stump all redshirted in 2015. Hill was a highly-touted prospect who Meyer said multiple times last season was close to playing. Gibson, also a highly-coveted recruit, had an up-and-down redshirt season as he made the transition from high-school quarterback to college wide receiver. Both have all-world talent and with solid spring should solidify themselves in the wide receiver rotation. Mack is a freshman early enrollee Barrett said already captured his attention during winter workouts. There's a chance he works himself into the rotation, as well.
Like almost every position on offense outside quarterback, Ohio State has a good amount of questions at wide receiver. There's certainly an abundance of talent, but the majority of that talent is unproven. The players preparing to go through spring practice have a golden opportunity to earn themselves some playing time.
The motivation is quite simple.
"Go get you a spot," Barrett said.
