Ohio State’s wide receivers have received a ton of attention in the preseason and it’s very likely they’ll get even more attention during the season. With the talent and experience of Emeka Egbuka, combined with the high expectations for young receivers Carnell Tate, Jeremiah Smith and Brandon Inniss, this season could be great for the passing game.
All four wide receivers are expected to be drafted in the next few years. For Egbuka, that is likely to happen in 2025 after he decided to forego the NFL Draft this year and try it one last time with the Buckeyes. The NFL recently released its top 100 players of 2024 and similarly, Pro Football Focus released its top 50 players of 2024 in college football. Egbuka is ranked 37th in their list.
PFF’s Top 50 Players in College Football:
Players 40–31🔥 pic.twitter.com/8EOgawlj1X
— PFF College (@PFF_College) 13 August 2024
“Egbuka returns for his final season after missing three games as a junior with an ankle injury. The year before, he was the second most valuable receiver in the Power Five according to PFF’s wins-above-average metric, with only teammate Marvin Harrison Jr. better. In the same group, he finished fifth in receiving yards (1,151) and seventh in receiving touchdowns (10) in 2022. Expect a big comeback from the Buckeyes’ top receiver in 2024.”
Egbuka and Harrison Jr. were certainly the most dangerous one-two punch at the wide receiver position in the 2022 season. If Egbuka stays healthy and can repeat that success in 2024, he will likely not only lead the offense in receptions and yards, but could also win some awards and increase his draft value even further. Despite having a new quarterback throwing to him this season, Egbuka should have no trouble getting free and finding the football.
Not only did Egbuka land at No. 37 in this ranking, but he’s also one spot higher than former Ohio State quarterback and current Texas Longhorns quarterback Quinn Ewers. As a prospect in the 2021 recruiting class, Ewers was No. 1 in 247 Sports’ rankings and Egbuka was No. 9.
Not only does Egbuka have a chance to lead Ohio State to some major success as a team this year, but he is just 77 catches away from breaking KJ Hill’s all-time record for most passes caught at Ohio State with 201. If Egbuka can earn gold pants by beating Michigan, set the all-time record for most passes caught at Ohio State and win a few championships this season, it would be the crowning achievement of a strong college career.
