Underrated Position?

Visit the Silver Bullet @ www.osusilverbullet.com

Dave Thurman (2:36 pm)

Quick, what comes to mind when you think of Ohio State football? 

Ask your run of the mill college football disciple that question and most will immediately answer, “the running game.” 

Thirty years after Woody coached his last game, we are still characterized as a “three-yards-and-a-cloud-of-dust” team.  People think of the Buckeye offense and images of big, strong running backs naturally come to mind: Pete Johnson, Keith Byers, Raymont Harris, Eddie George, and yes, Beanie Wells.

But which position on offense has Ohio State been most successful at producing, at least in regard to the NFL, over the past 25 years? 

Try wide receiver.  That’s right.  Not offensive linemen, not running back, and (big shock) not tight end. 

Now when you ask people which schools do the best job at producing receivers, I’ll bet next month’s house rent that they will point to Florida’s Big 3 (UF, FSU and Cryami), along with USC and maybe Oklahoma.  Certainly those in the Midwest would throw in Michigan, which has had some awfully fine wide outs. 

But Ohio State?  Surely not!  Well, just take a look at the list of some of the better receivers that have donned Scarlet and Gray the past twenty plus years:

Cris Carter

The best at this position in Buckeye history, he had huge hands and defined the term “circus catch.”  Carter had a great NFL career, and I would rank him as one of the five best receivers to ever play pro football.

Jeff Graham

Could really catch the deep pass, and had a fine NFL career.

Brian Stablein

Pretty fast for a white boy; he became a decent possession receiver at the next level.

Joey Galloway

The fastest player I have ever witnessed in the flesh, the only thing that could ever stop him was an injury. He has enjoyed a long and very successful NFL career despite a few physical setbacks.

Chris Sanders

Incredible speed, with so-so hands, he had a few good years in the pros.

Terry Glenn

Incredible speed and really good hands.  Parcells may have questioned his manhood but this guy can play, and has done it at both levels.

Dee Miller

Great athlete who was really ballyhooed coming out of high school.  Early injuries kept him from achieving his full potential but he was a very good college player who never got to play in the NFL.

David Boston

The closest thing to Cris Carter to come down the pike, he was huge before steroids, and tight-end sized afterwards.  He was having a brilliant NFL career, until the ‘roids started to rage!

Ken-Yon Rambo

Never as good as we thought he was going to be, but still an explosive receiver who had a few years in the pay-for-play league.

Reggie Germany

Fabulous body but a really poor work ethic, he became the poster boy for all that was wrong in the Cooper era, but still had his moments on the field, if not in the classroom.

Michael Jenkins

A great money receiver during his college days; his NFL career has been OK, but greatly hampered by poor quarterback play in Atlanta.

Drew Carter

Big and fast, his OSU days were marred by injuries, but he is still playing on Sundays.

Santonio Holmes

Another really fast guy who had some fabulous highlights in his Buckeye days and is continuing to produce big-time for the Steelers.

Teddy Ginn Jr.

Has anyone ever looked faster with the ball in their hands?  TGII has another gear, and as he learns more about playing wide out, he should have a long NFL career.

Anthony Gonzalez

Probably underappreciated because of Ginn, he is a pure receiver and showed it in his rookie season in the big leagues.

Wow!  That’s quite a list, isn’t it?  And I left out a few pretty good receivers along the way.  Of course, we have two more in the making right now, in the law firm of Brian and Brian (Robiskie and Hartline).  Add all that up and you’ll see that Ohio State has been pretty close to Receiver U. in the past couple of decades. 

Sorry Woody, it’s a long way from “Only three things can happen when you throw the ball and two are bad!”  And with the way Tress is recruiting, we aren’t going to see this come to an end any time soon.  Now if we could just use those tight ends a little more…