It’s no secret Ohio State has one of the most historic programs in NCAA football history. One of three teams to win a College Football Playoff championship, the Buckeyes have been dominant in recent seasons.
With eight national championships, the Ohio State football program was recently rated the third-best in NCAA history by the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
They can thank some record-setting wide receiver-quarterback combos that have led the team at various parts of the last few decades. That said, let’s dive into how the top-six rank among the all-time Buckeye greats.
Next … The Q-run and the deep threat
No. 6 – QB JT Barrett and Devin Smith
During his first collegiate season, JT Barrett was graced with senior Devin Smith out wide. Smith totaled just over 1,400 yards through his first three seasons and exploded among Barrett’s arrival.
Arguably having his best collegiate season in 2014, Barrett threw for over 2,800 yards and over 900 of it to Smith. What was insane about their connection is that Smith neared 1,000 yards yet only caught 33 balls.
To be factual, Smith had 931 yards on 33 receptions.
Talk about a connection. Over 28 yards per catch is unheard of for the entirety of a season. He also notched 12 touchdowns. Over a third of his receptions were touchdowns.
Smith, due to this breakout season, was selected in the second round by the New York Jets while Barrett recently signed with the Seahawks after two unsuccessful stints with New Orleans. He will forever be a Buckeye legend though.
Next … Banking the trend
No. 5 – QB Art Schlichter and WR Gary Williams
As part of a six-year stretch of going exactly 9-3, 1981 was highlighted by the dynamic combo of Art Schlichter and Gary Williams, neither of which had talent that translated to the NFL.
Williams played just eight games in the league while Schlichter failed to win all six of his starts at the highest level. However, that doesn’t mean that while both at Ohio State, they didn’t dominate.
During that 1981 season, Schlichter ended with over 2,500 yards and was fourth in Heisman voting. Williams secured 941 yards with six touchdowns and 50 receptions.
Taking up such a bulk of Schlichter’s yards, the two old-school Buckeyes come in at No. 5 at a time when Ohio State was still known as a program centered around the tailback position.
Next … Speed and a street-baller
No. 4 – QB Troy Smith and WR Ted Ginn Jr.
It seems like yesterday when Troy Smith, Ted Ginn Jr., and Antonio Pittman ripped the heart out of the state of Michigan with just over two minutes remaining in the most important game of the season at the end of 2006.
That game, Ginn Jr. totaled a game-high 8 receptions, a game-high 104 yards and a touchdown. Meanwhile, Smith tossed four touchdowns and went for over 300 yards. Capping off a perfect regular season with a 42-39 win was one for the annals of Ohio State history.
Just months before being taken ninth overall in the 2007 NFL Draft, Ginn Jr. completed his best collegiate season. Smith, like Ginn Jr., went off in 2006 with over 2,500 yards and 30 touchdowns.
Unlike Ginn Jr., Smith was never able to find a true home at the next level. His glory days will live on in the minds of fans that watched a phenomenal performance throughout 2006 from both Smith and Ginn Jr.
Next … Precision and explosiveness
No. 3 – QB Dwayne Haskins and WR Parris Campbell
4,831 yards and 50 touchdowns.
We saw college football greatness last season from Dwayne Haskins. The beneficiary of that along with a top-tier offensive line was receiver Parris Campbell who solidified himself as Haskins go-to target.
Campbell set a program record with 90 receptions, had 1,063 yards with 12 touchdowns. becoming just the fifth Buckeye wide-receiver to eclipse the 1,000 yard mark in a season. Like Ginn Jr., Campbell thrived against the Buckeyes most-rivaled opponent, Michigan.
He notched his third multi-touchdown game to go along with 192 yards on six receptions. Those numbers are game changing, yet his 32 yards per catch may take the cake as the most notable. In that shootout, Haskins was four yards from 400 and threw six (6!) touchdowns.
Along with Nick Bosa, Haskins and Campbell made up the top-three Buckeyes in the 2019 NFL Draft and certainly have a promising future ahead of them.
Next … From nowhere to everywhere
No. 2 – QB Bobby Hoying and WR Terry Glenn
There were few receivers in college football that were at the level Terry Glenn was for one season in 1995.
In his junior year, Glenn notched 1,411 yards, the second-most in a single season by an OSU receiver. He also holds the record for most receiving yards in a single game (253) and touchdowns in a season (17) at Ohio State.
He also did that in just 12 games, securing an average of 115 yards per game on his way to winning the Biletnikoff Award. Just a few months later, he was drafted seventh overall in the 1996 NFL Draft.
Glenn couldn’t have done it without an elite quarterback in Bobby Hoying. With 3,269 yards, Hoying eventually heard his name called in the draft as well.
OSU kicked off the season at No. 12 and rose to No. 2 after rattling off eleven-straight victories. Sadly, they fell to Michigan that season and then Tennessee the following game.
That shouldn’t discredit how dominant of a duo Hoying and Glenn were.
Next … The best tandem?
No. 1 – QB Joe Germaine and WR David Boston
In 1998 David Boston put together the best receiving season of any Buckeye in school history. He set the record for most career yards in a single season with 1,435 but also scored 13 touchdowns for the third-most in program history (he also holds second place).
With an 11-1 record, the Buckeyes finished second in the final AP poll after beating Texas A&M by ten in the Sugar Bowl. The third-seeded Ohio State would’ve highly benefited from today’s College Football Playoffs format and was probably the best team in the country that year.
The guy pulling the trigger for Boston was quarterback Joe Germaine, who was selected in the fourth round of the 1999 NFL Draft after throwing for over 3,330 yards — over a third of which were to Boston.
What Boston and Germain did in 1998 gets the top spot for the best quarterback/wide-receiver combo in Ohio State history.
