It is NFL Combine Eve, where the prospects have one foot in college and one foot in the pros. It’s also the only place where football in a T-shirt and short pants is life or death, at least the draft version of life or death, which is why Ohio State’s Garrett Wilson hopes to run his swiftest 40-yard dash ever this week.
Wilson is one of the more intriguing players at the Combine, with his elite jump ball skills and his Ohio/Texas pedigree. Raised in Dublin, Ohio, he moved to Austin, Texas at the age 11 as an aspiring basketball player. His father Kenny had been a dominant scorer collegiately at Davidson, holding several school records until Steph Curry obliterated them all, and Garrett at first seemed to be following in his father’s hoops footsteps.
At Austin’s Lake Travis High School, Garrett was an immediate basketball starter, averaged 21 points a game as a junior and could already beat-down his dad playing one-on-one. But Texas’ Friday Night Lights ultimately won Garrett over, as well as one look at the high school’s trophy case—which paid homage to its most celebrated alum, quarterback Baker Mayfield.
Austin was football country, and Wilson wanted to be a part of it all. A sure-handed receiver who seemed to be able to snare anything behind him or way above him, he was named the top recruit in the state of Texas by the Austin American-Statesman and the No. 2 overall receiver in the nation by 247Sports.com.
Ohio State won the recruiting battle, and while lining up both outside and in the slot, Wilson morphed into a Buckeye human highlight reel. As a sophomore in 2020, he became the second Ohio State receiver to ever have four consecutive 100-yard receiving days, and, as a junior in 2021, he scored a ridiculous four touchdowns in one game—including a 51-yard jet sweep—against Purdue.
In three seasons, Wilson ended up accumulating 143 catches, 2,213 receiving yards and 23 touchdowns before deciding to declare for the 2022 draft, where he and another Ohio State receiver, Chris Olave, are both projected first round picks. In fact, three different mock drafts—from CBS Sports to USA Today to Walter Camp football—each have Wilson going 13th overall to, of all teams, Mayfield’s Cleveland Browns.
A lot will depend how fast Wilson runs at this week’s Combine. He has trained in Columbus and more recently at Exos in Phoenix, Ariz., working on his sprint technique. In his spare time, he has also signed an autograph and trading-card partnership with Panini America—which is highlighting Wilson’s draft journey on @PaniniAmerica as part of the company’s “Road to Rated Rookie’’ content series.
Wilson is also technology-conscious and doesn’t go anywhere without his Apple Watch:
Ohio State wide receiver Garrett Wilson, a projected first round pick, celebrating a TD with an Apple Watch on his left wrist.
On his approach to this week’s NFL Combine…
I’m preparing real hard for the combine. That’s everything right now. Training for the combine is completely everything. I expect to show my speed; that’s been the big question surrounding me. I expect to answer those questions, and that’s basically the biggest thing for me, just running well and showing my hands and what I can do. I think the film [from college] speaks for itself, but to be able to put up a good time with it, that would be really awesome.
On the best way to train for the 40-yard dash…
Exos in Phoenix does a great job of making it correlate between the weight room and running well. So I’m getting stronger in the weight room and that has exactly to do with what I’m running. I feel like I’m getting better every day, and I owe it all to Exos, along with my training mindset I take into the weight room. People have great plans, and it’s just my job to follow their plan. I don’t have to do too much but what they’re asking.
On the technology he utilizes to help him in football…
The Apple Watch. I mean, I’m one of those guys that has the Apple Watch on whether I’m on the field or it’s practice or whether it’s a game. I have it on no matter what. I like knowing what I’m doing; I like knowing how far I ran or walked that day. I remember a game I got up to 12 miles on a game day this past season. Just being able to see that, it’s cool. You can track your steps and see what calories you lose so I know what to put back in my body. All those types of things.
Ohio State was also big on using the Dexa-Scan, which is a body scan. It tells you your muscle and fat, your body composition, all that stuff. It’s called a Dexa. A very cool thing we use. Being a receiver, nutrition is huge. You want to know what you’re eating and where those calories are going and stuff like that. And it tells you all that.
There’s a lot of technology that goes into getting your body right. I’d say those are the main things I use, for sure. I mean, I wore the Apple Watch during every game at Ohio State. My high was that day with 12 miles. That’s combined walking and running, it doesn’t specify. But, yeah, it was 12 miles total, I remember.
On why he wound up with 12 miles that day….
Well, I scored four touchdowns. It was the Purdue game. I remember looking at it and going, wow, I got 12 miles today. That was pretty funny.
On that four-touchdown day against Purdue…
It was actually my first game back. I had missed a game previous against Nebraska just as a precautionary from a head injury. I had a concussion, a mild concussion, very mild. And I came back and I had fresh legs. So it felt good to be back out there. You kind of take it for granted when you’ve never missed a game, and I’d never missed a game to that point in a while. Never had missed a game in my college career. And so I came back for Purdue, and I felt really good. It was one of those games where I was just clicking the first drive. I got a play and there was no one out there. So you feel good after that. And then it just kept being open, one of those type things. It’s hard to explain. When you play at a place like Ohio State, it’s hard to guard the whole field. There’re great players everywhere. To be able to have that game was really exciting, especially being my first game back. It was a big confidence boost.
On the one touchdown he’ll always remember from that game…
Probably the jet sweep, around the edge [for a 51-yard touchdown], I’d say. You don’t often get a rushing touchdown so that was fun.
On when he checks his Apple Watch during a game…
On the sideline. In between drives, I’d say I check it a little bit. It was one of those things [that day against Purdue], the young guys were going in the game at receiver. My day was done after the third quarter, so I checked it, and it was 12 miles. It was just the third quarter, so I could have done more.
Wilson with one of his four TDs this past November against Purdue, a day he logged 12 miles, according to his Apple Watch.
On growing up with basketball…
Yeah, I mean, we were a basketball family honestly. It was really competitive, so when I was growing up my dad played against my older brother. I had three other brothers. I would watch them play, and if I was lucky, they would let me get in the game. It was just a real competitive atmosphere; we were always going at it. It was my first love. So, honestly, basketball was my first love. I owe a lot of my athletic ability to playing basketball since such a young age.
On playing one-on-one against his dad…
I don’t think I beat my dad in basketball until I was in the 9th grade. So my dad was really good. That’s where I get the competitive spirit from; he wouldn’t let me win, none of that. He had all the records at Davidson until Steph Curry came through. So that’s how that went.
On what got him into football…
I always loved football, as well, but it was one of those things where it was the right business decision. Growing up in Austin, it’s different out there. When you have a high school game, it’s just different. The whole city comes out, the whole city shuts down. I felt that. The tradition around it. And I really fell in love with it. And then being 6-foot, it was a little easier to have a chance to make it in football than basketball. All those went into my [decision].
On attending the same high school as Baker Mayfield, although a few years apart…
Me and Baker have a real good relationship. I always say I know how Baker can sling it. I’ve thrown with him multiple times. He coached our 7-on-7 team for about, I think this was probably my sophomore year of high school. He came back and coached our 7-on-7 team. So he never abandoned us. He always came back and checked on us, no matter how successful he was. Some of that was while he was at Oklahoma, and we still talk to this day. He’s a real good friend of mine, and I love Baker, for sure.
Wilson is projected to be drafted 13th overall by the Browns, where his fellow Lake Travis High School alum, quarterback Baker Mayfield, could badly use him.
On Mayfield’s coaching ability…
He was a funny coach. I’m not gonna say he was really coaching too much. He was more talking trash. But he was pretty funny. I love him.
On advice Mayfield’s given him about the NFL…
I can’t say we talk about the league too much. It was always college. I never wanted to focus too far ahead. So last time I spoke with him was during quarantine going into my sophomore year. It was more talking about that season and what I was planning on doing. It never got to the point we were talking about NFL. But I’m sure the next time we talk it’ll be a different conversation, for sure.
On whether he’s envisioned draft night yet…
Nah, I haven’t. I like to stay in the moment. So I’m training to get myself the best opportunity to get drafted as high as possible, and that’s really all I’m focused on right now. When that day comes, I’m definitely looking forward to it, but I can’t say I’ve even thought about that yet. But it’ll be awesome.
On whether he prefers playing in the slot or the outside in the NFL…
Just being able to do whatever it takes to take the team to the next level and win a Super Bowl. When you see a rookie receiver have such a big impact on a team like the Bengals and Joe Burrow with Ja’Marr Chase, I want to do something like that. I want to have a huge impact and help a team take that next step. Whatever it takes. Whether it’s outside or in the slot. Whatever the coach needs.
Wilson’s basketball skills come in handy on the 50-50 balls, where he took a touchdown away from Michigan’s Vincent Gray this past November.
On the best thing he does on a football field…
Go up and get the jump ball. Catch the ball above my head. Make those 50-50 balls 80-20. I think that’s the best thing I do. If I can get an edge on a 50-50 ball, that’s huge. It makes it easier on the quarterback and makes him trust in me. And I feel that’s what I do best.
On which NFL receiver he’d compare himself to….
Tough question. I like to take some things from other people’s games, but I don’t like to compare myself. I like Devonte Adams a lot, Cooper Kupp, those are the dudes that are successful in the league for a while. I take a lot of things from their game. I don’t want to hold myself to expectations and try to be someone else. I just want to do me.
