Jan 18, 2025; Atlanta, GA, USA; A Ohio State Buckeyes helmet on the field during practice at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Ohio State WR Poised for Breakout Season With Emeka Egbuka Gone

Originally posted on Ohio State Buckeyes on SI
By Ben Cooper | Last updated Sep 1, 2025 1:00 PM ET

The Ohio State Buckeyes were National Champions in the 2024-25 season, but lost many of their stars to the NFL.

One major loss for the Buckeyes' offense was wide receiver Emeka Egbuka. Egbuka had an incredible senior season, hauling in 81 receptions for 1,011 yards and eight touchdowns. Following his productive Ohio State career, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers drafted him with the 19th overall pick in the NFL Draft.

Egbuka served as the No. 2 receiver behind Jeremiah Smith. With Egbuka gone, Carnell Tate should have a breakout campaign.

Carnell Tate's Golden Opportunity

In the 2024 season, Tate was the No. 3 receiver for the Buckeyes, catching 52 passes for 733 yards and four touchdowns.

Tate is already off to a good start in 2025. In Ohio State's win over Texas in Week 1, he had two receptions for 49 yards and a touchdown. Tate's 40-yard touchdown catch was pivotal in a close game as the Buckeyes won 14-7.

The 20-year-old wideout's production will be pivotal as opposing defenses will often key in on Smith, which frees up more opportunities for Tate.

The Buckeyes are renowned for developing elite wide receivers, with NFL stars including Egbuka, Marvin Harrison Jr., Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Chris Olave, Garrett Wilson, and Terry McLaurin.

Smith is well on his way to joining that list. In his rookie campaign, he hauled in 76 passes for 1,315 yards and 15 touchdowns.

However, Tate could enter that group with a solid season. Ohio State was conservative on offense in their game against No. 1 Texas. Quarterback Julian Sayin made his first career start, completing 13 of his 20 passes for 126 yards and a touchdown.

After their win, head coach Ryan Day talked about the limited gameplan for Sayin.

“When you’re the quarterback at Ohio State and you’re playing No. 1 Texas against one of the top defenses in the country, which we have a tremendous amount of respect for, the one thing we didn’t want to do—and I didn’t want to do—was put him in a bad spot,” Day said. “It’s just not fair to him. Now, coming out of it, quite honestly, I think he probably could have handled it, you know, but we weren’t going to do that, because we know it’s a long season, and that was the decision that was made.”

This bodes well for Tate as the season progresses, as the passing offense should only improve. Tate already thrived with a touchdown catch in Week 1 and is poised for a breakout campaign.

This article first appeared on Ohio State Buckeyes on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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