Buckeye Leaves: Marvin Harrison Jr., Emeka Egbuka And Mike Hall Jr.
Andy Anders, BSB: Even a big day from sophomore wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. couldn’t overshadow that of his fellow sophomore pass catcher Emeka Egbuka.
Egbuka hauled in four receptions for 118 yards and a score, with the touchdown coming on a wide-open throw up the middle of Arkansas State’s defense. The Washington native cruised to the house for a 51-yard strike, giving the Buckeyes a 38-6 lead in the third quarter.
Ohio State opened up the playbook a little bit for him too, handing him the ball on a jet sweep that Egbuka took 27 yards up the sideline.
Egbuka’s biggest highlight of the day didn’t get listed in the official box score, however. Had it not been for two penalties on the play, he may have recorded the Buckeyes’ first return touchdown since 2014 on a punt he ran back 78 yards to the endzone. Instead a personal foul granted the Red Wolves a first down on the play.
Jack Emerson, BSB: For the second consecutive week, Mike Hall will earn a Buckeye Leaf from the BSB staff.
Although, he was forced to exit the game in the third quarter, Hall was once again a disrupting presence on the Ohio State defensive front. He finished the afternoon with all of his three tackles going for a loss, including a sack of Arkansas State quarterback James Blackman late in the second quarter.
Hall’s efforts aided an Ohio State defense that held Arkansas State to an average of 1.6 yards per carry and 53 total yards on the ground.
Braden Moles, BSB: Was there any individual player on the field more dominant than sophomore wideout Marvin Harrison Jr.? Harrison was everywhere for Ohio State’s offense, finishing with seven receptions for 184 yards and three touchdowns.
With Harrison’s three touchdown grabs, he became just the second Buckeye to have multiple games for Ohio State with three receiving touchdowns, joining Joey Galloway (1992 vs. MSU, 1994 vs. Purdue).
If Jaxon Smith-Njigba – who was a game-time decision but did not play for the Buckeyes – is forced to miss more time, Ohio State has more than an adequate replacement at lead receiver in Harrison.