Marvin Harrison Jr. is by far one of the best players in college football, and the media circus following him is palpable. With all of this hype surrounding Harrison, another phenomenal wide receiver on the same offense is being overlooked: Emeka Egbuka.
Emeka Egbuka: The Five-Star
With all the hype surrounding Harrison, you may be surprised to learn that Egbuka was ranked much higher than him in the same 2021 recruiting class. Coming out of high school, Egbuka was touted as the number one receiver in the class to go along with his five-star ranking compared to Harrison’s ranking as the 21st-best receiver.
The Legendary Ohio State Wide Receiver Room of 2021
Despite being a highly-touted recruit, Egbuka was only able to catch nine passes as a freshman. On the surface, this looks like another case of a freshman who couldn’t transition to the next level in year one.
However, this was not the case, as Egbuka averaged 21.2 yards per catch when he did touch the ball and instead, Egbuka was playing in arguably one of the greatest wide receiver rooms in college football history.
Simply put, the receivers ahead of him: Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Garrett Wilson, and Chris Olave. All three were first-round NFL Draft picks and could very well be followed by Harrison Jr. and Egbuka.
Egbuka’s 2022 Breakout
Heading into the 2022 college football season and despite Wilson and Olave jumping to the NFL, Egbuka still faced stiff competition for targets. After Smith-Njigba played just three games due to a lingering hamstring injury, Egbuka saw a significantly increased role.
Harrison would finish as the team’s first unanimous All-American, but Egbuka’s influence on the offense was apparent. Next to Harrison’s phenomenal season (77-1263-14) was Egbuka’s 74-1151-10 breakout year.
This incredibly talented Ohio State team finished 11-2 and fell just short of making the National Championship Game, falling to the eventual champion Georgia Bulldogs. In a game where the Buckeyes would lose by one point, Egbuka had a phenomenal 8-112-1 performance.
2023 Outlook
After his breakout 2022 season, it’s fair to expect Egbuka to continue to improve and take even another step forward in this offense. Egbuka will be playing next to Harrison once again while they’re likely to be joined by Julian Fleming in an expanded role. This makes Egbuka the clear-cut No. 2 in this offense again.
However, a reason to be pessimistic about Egbuka taking a major step forward is his potential downgrade at quarterback.
Kyle McCord is expected to start next season for the Buckeyes and was a four-star prospect in high school. The junior has had time to develop and may finally get his opportunity with the departure of C.J. Stroud if he can defeat Devin Brown for the job.
Even if McCord has a solid first season as the starter, it’s hard to see him out-producing the number two pick in last year’s NFL Draft.
Considering all these factors, you can still expect Egbuka to post somewhere along the lines of an 80-1200-11 season in 2023. With all the media attention on Harrison, don’t let Egbuka fly under your radar this upcoming season.
Emeka Egbuka Player Profile
- Height: 6’1″
- Weight: 205
- Number: 2
- Class: Junior
- Hometown: Steilacoom, WA
- High School: Steilacoom
- Years Active: 2021-2023
- Previous School(s): n/a
- Draft Eligibility: 2024
Emeka Egbuka’s Career Receiving Stats
- Career Receptions: 83
- Career Receiving Yards: 1,342
- Career Receiving TDs: 10
- Yards Per Catch: 16.2
- Yards Per Game: 58.3
