COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The touchdowns were nice, especially since Johnnie Dixon hadn't caught one with a crowd watching since high school.

The frequent targets, his team-high yardage total in the spring game and a couple of jaw-dropping moves were positives as well, signs that he could be a major factor at wide receiver for an Ohio State team that could use a new weapon for the passing attack.

A healthy Johnnie Dixon could be a difference-maker for Ohio State's offense this fall. Photo by Jason Mowry/Icon Sportswire

But Dixon's measure of success for his work in camp over the past month was a bit simpler. And as soon as he stepped on the field at the Horseshoe on Saturday to give him a perfect participation grade over Ohio State's 15 workouts, Dixon was already a winner heading into the summer.

"Yeah, it's amazing -- I haven't missed a day of practice," Dixon said. "It's been a long time since I've done that. It was amazing to be out there every day, bringing energy to the group and all that. It was an amazing feeling.

"It's always fun to go out there and be able to compete and feel fully healthy. I mean, I haven't been able to catch a passing touchdown since my high school days."

The Buckeyes would have had a hard time envisioning the drought would last this long for Dixon, who arrived on campus early in 2014 with plenty of fanfare and no shortage of hype about his potential as a playmaker.

But knee injuries and tendinitis not only robbed the redshirt junior of chances to make a splash on game days for the Buckeyes, they largely made it difficult for him to even get through consecutive practices. And after a season in which he was limited to just seven appearances, including one with his only career rushing touchdown in a blowout win over Rutgers, there were legitimate questions about his ability and desire to even give another year a shot.

"Johnnie is an enigma," coach Urban Meyer said. "A very talented guy, nice person. But he got here, had this tendinitis and issues in his knees, and he would go two practices and have to miss two. ... He probably shouldn't have come back, if you had a career like he's had.

"But his teammates, his position coach, Zach Smith, and I talked to him, and he wanted one last swing. And he had the best spring -- he didn't miss a practice. I was so happy to see him have great success today, because we really need him."

Ohio State's receivers underwhelmed collectively last season and then lost their top three players in the offseason. There's perhaps no unit on the roster more in need of emerging talent. And while Dixon only has seven receptions on his résumé, his experience around the program could help set him apart from the new wave of touted recruits coming in looking to boost a sagging passing game.

On top of that, the former ESPN 300 pick also shown that he can handle adversity after working back from his injuries. And he hasn't backed down from the challenge when it would have been easy to just walk away from the game.

"After the year, he had to really see if he could get his body healthy and get it to where it is today," Smith said. "And he did, so we're excited to see a healthy Johnnie Dixon, you know? He's healthy right now, but he's still developing. He's played, but for three years he really has been kind of not practicing.

"At the same time, he's been mentally developed for three years. He understands football, he understands the position, he understands the offense, so he's ahead of where a young kid would be. But physically, the grind of being able to go through 15 practices and push through it and get better -- that's what he’s dealing with and having to push through."

In front of a sold-out crowd at Ohio Stadium on what eventually turned into a sunny afternoon, Dixon did more than just survive one final spring practice.

And while getting healthy was an important step, the 108 yards and two touchdowns hinted that it might almost be time to find a new way to measure his success.

"It's been some of the toughest times I've been through," Dixon said. "I wouldn't say there were doubts, because it was more like me not knowing if I wanted to continue to play or whatever.

"We all sat down and had the meeting, decided to take one more swing at it. I'm glad we did."

And if the Buckeyes can keep him swinging day after day in the fall, odds are Dixon will be in line to catch some touchdowns when it really counts.