Emeka Egbuka

WR, KR · Ohio St.

  • OVERVIEW

  • Refined route runner who amassed 81 catches for 1,011 yards in 2024, 12.5 per catch, and ten touchdowns. He shows the advanced ability to win with technique rather than pure athleticism, particularly excelling on option routes and working between the hashes. Natural fit in a timing-based system that emphasizes quick game concepts and horizontal spacing from slot alignments. The combination of reliable hands and precise route running translates immediately to third down and red zone situations at the next level. Has shown consistent improvement each season with notable development in release technique and route salesmanship. While primarily a slot operator, his 2024 performance (68-yard TD, 587 yards through 11 games) showcases enough versatility to align across formations in creative offensive schemes. Return ability adds day one special teams value.

     BACKGROUND 

  • Washington state native arrived in Columbus as Washington's 2019 Gatorade Player of the Year after recording 83 catches, 1,607 yards, and 25 touchdowns as a senior. At Ohio State, Egbuka has displayed remarkable consistency, capped by a senior campaign with 47 receptions, 587 yards and 8 touchdowns through 11 games in 2024, pushing his career totals to 171 receptions, 2,444 yards and 22 touchdowns. His 2022 campaign highlighted his playmaking ability with 74 catches for 1,151 yards and 10 touchdowns, including six 100-yard games. After battling injuries in 2023 (41 receptions, 515 yards, 4 TDs), he rebounded in 2024 with improved explosiveness, averaging 12.5 yards per catch and leading the team with 8 receiving touchdowns, including a season-long 68-yard score. The Academic All-American has earned Third-Team All-Big Ten (2023) and Second-Team All-Big Ten (2022) honors while setting program records. He finished ninth nationally in receiving yards (1,151) in 2022 and ranked third in the Big Ten in receptions, yards, and touchdowns that season.

     ANALYSIS

  • Pros

    Technician in his stems who sets up breaks with crafty head fakes and tempo changes in the route tree Plus short-area quickness allows clean breaks at the top of routes with minimal wasted movement Natural hands catcher who plucks away from frame and adjusts body positioning to shield defenders Displays savvy understanding of spatial awareness when working against zone coverage Slippery runner after the catch who sets up blocks and finds cutback lanes in space Shows juice as a return specialist with vision to hit creases and accelerate through traffic Plus competitive toughness as a blocker who sustains and drives through contact Proven production against press coverage with refined release package from slot alignments

     Cons

  • Medical red flags after missing three games in 2023 with lower body injuries affecting explosion Limited exposure to boundary alignments with majority of snaps coming from slot Below average catch radius restricts ability to expand strike zone outside frame Lacks ideal build-up speed to consistently stack corners on vertical routes Can get muscled off stems by physical corners in press coverage situations.

  • HISTORY -- From College bio

    Ohio State Overview
    • Emeka will be the leader of what will once again be a talented wide receiver corps at Ohio State 
    • He is a terrific and talented receiver who has started 24 times, played in 35 games the past three seasons and will contend for national honors in 2024
    • He enters the 2024 campaign needing 78 receptions to break K.J. Hill's school record of 201, set between 2016-19
    • He also needs 1,041 receiving yards to break the yardage career record of 2,898 yards currently held by Michael Jenkins (2000-03) 
    • Enters the 2024 season with 124 career receptions (T14th at Ohio State) for 1,857 yards (16th at Ohio State) and 14 touchdowns 
    • Battled through an injury in 2023 that kept him out of three games (Purdue, Penn State and Wisconsin)
    • Caught 41 passes in 2023 for 515 yards and four touchdowns and was named third-team all-Big Ten by the conference coaches 
    • Had an outstanding 2022 campaign in which he finished ninth nationally in receiving yards with 1,151 and ninth nationally with 46 receptions of 10-or-more yards
    • His true sophomore campaign included 74 receptions and 10 touchdowns in addition to his impressive yardage total of 1,151 that ranks sixth at Ohio State for a single season 
    • Was 15th nationally in 2022 with 19 catches of 20-or-more yards
    • Ranked third in the Big Ten in receptions, yards and touchdowns and was named second-team all-Big Ten
    • Averaged 6.8 yards per punt return off 11 returns with a long of 18
    • A 2022 finalist for the Paul Hornung Award
    • Had six 100-yard receiving games in 2022 to rank fifth in Ohio State history
    • Set career-bests during the 2022 season with nine receptions vs. both Notre Dame and Michigan and had eight vs. Georgia
    • His six 100-yard receiving games featured 143 yards vs. Michigan State in addition to 125 yards vs. Michigan, 112 vs. Georgia, 118 vs. both Wisconsin and Arkansas State and 116 vs. Toledo
    • Has accumulated 51 receptions for 610 yards and four TDs in eight games vs. ranked opponents (vs. No. 11 Utah, No. 5 Notre Dame, No. 13 Penn State, No. 3 Michigan, No. 1 Georgia, No. 9 Notre Dame, No. 3 Michigan and No. 9 Missouri) 
    • Enters 2024 with receptions in 24 consecutive games  
    • Lettered as a true freshman in 2021 after getting offensive snaps in eight games and playing in 11 games 
    • Was No. 1 in the Big Ten Conference and No. 12 nationally with a kickoff return average of 29.0 yards per return in 2021
    • Averaged over 41 yards per kickoff return (4 ret.; 166 yards) in the win over Maryland with a season-long return of 67 yards  
    • Earned Freshman All-America status by Pro Football Focus  
    • Caught nine passes for 191 yards with a team-high 21.2 yards-per-catch average 
    • Had an 85-yard catch-and-run reception from Kyle McCord vs. Akron that represents the third-longest pass play in school history and the sixth-longest play overall from scrimmage   
    • Had an outstanding Rose Bowl  game with 163 kickoff return yards and three receptions for 46 yards with a long of 30 yards 
    • Is a College Sports Communicators Academic All-American (second team), a two-time Academic all-Big Ten honoree and a three-time OSU-Scholar-Athlete who has graduated with his degree in marketing

    Honors & Awards
    2023: Graduated in December with his degree in marketing, third-team all-Big Ten (coaches), OSU Scholar-Athlete, Academic All-Big Ten honoree 
    2022: Finalist for the Paul Hornung Award, second-team all-Big Ten Conference (coaches & media), College Sports Communicators Academic All-American (second team), Academic all-Big Ten, OSU Scholar-Athlete 
    2021: Freshman All-American (Pro Football Focus), honorable mention all-Big Ten on special teams, OSU Scholar-Athlete 

    More on Emeka
    • Emeka enrolled in classes at Ohio State in January 2021, one of 14 from the 2021 recruiting class to arrive early
    • A consensus five-star prospect who is the nation’s top-ranked wide receiver and the No. 8 overall player according to 247Sports
    • The 2019 Gatorade Player of the Year is the state of Washington
    • Caught 83 passes for 1,607 yards and 25 touchdowns as a senior
    • Also returned three punts for scores and rushed for four TDs
    • Totaled 2,240 all-purpose yards
    • Recorded 28 tackles and eight interceptions from his defensive back position and returned two for touchdowns
    • Helped Steilacoom reach the 2A state championship game where he set a title-game record with 18 receptions for 163 yards and three touchdowns to go along with eight tackles and an interceptions
    • Caught 199 passes for nearly 4,000 yards and 61 TDs in his career
    • Washington moved its 2020 high school football season to the spring of 2021 and thus Egbuka did not play a senior season
    • Was also a standout baseball player
    • Parents are Henry Egbuka and Rhonda Ogilvie; stepfather is Eric Ogilvie
    • Has a younger brother, Keanan, and a younger sister, Eva

2022

rushing
YPC TD YDS CAR LONG
7.9 2.0 87.0 11.0 27.0
receiving
REC YPR TD LONG YDS
74.0 15.6 10.0 69.0 1151.0
fumbles
REC LOST FUM
0.0 1.0 1.0
defensive
TFL QB HUR TOT TD PD SACKS SOLO
0.0 0.0 1.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 1.0
kickReturns
LONG YDS NO TD AVG
25.0 25.0 1.0 0.0 25.0
puntReturns
AVG NO TD LONG YDS
6.8 11.0 0.0 18.0 75.0

2021

receiving
REC YPR TD LONG YDS
9.0 21.2 0.0 85.0 191.0
fumbles
REC LOST FUM
0.0 0.0 1.0
defensive
TFL QB HUR TOT TD PD SACKS SOLO
0.0 0.0 2.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 2.0
kickReturns
LONG YDS NO TD AVG
67.0 580.0 20.0 0.0 29.0

Physical Attributes:

Proj Rd: 1
Height: 6006
Weight: 205
Forty: 4.42
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