'Million dollar place:' Newest receivers ready to cash in at OSU

COLUMBUS - It wasn't enough that he got a jump start on his Ohio State football career. As soon as he arrived on campus in January, Jaxon Smith-Njigba began begging for homework.

He wanted to study as much film as he could of slot receiver K.J. Hill, who just finished his OSU career as the school's all-time leading receiver.

"I'll tell (receivers) coach (Brian Hartline), 'Send me some clips,'" Smith-Njigba said. "He'll send me some clips, so I can just watch them because (Hill) did a great job. He was great at what he did. Hopefully once it's my turn, I can just hit the ground running."

Smith-Njigba is part of what is being called one of the greatest single position hauls in modern recruiting history.

The centerpiece, on paper, is Julian Fleming, the nation's top-ranked receiver, from Pennsylvania. Smith-Njigba, a fellow 5-star from Texas, was the No. 5 wideout and jumped 300 spots in the rankings over the last year.

They are joined in a 2020 class ranked No. 5 by 247Sports and No. 1 in the Big Ten by 10th-ranked receiver Gee Scott Jr., a rare find from the state of Washington, and former Texas commit Mookie Cooper, ranked No. 16 nationally.

They become part of a receivers room led by junior Chris Olave and sophomore Garrett Wilson. The splash they made as freshmen was part of the appeal for this latest iteration of the Fab Four.

All four are already on campus and had their first media availability last week. They've wasted no time bonding, seeing themselves more as brothers than competitors for playing time.

“Friends for life, really; I feel like we’re going to grow together," Scott said. "That’s one of the things I’m excited about. If I walk into a program that isn’t very good and the talent isn’t really on that level I might be able to have more room to slack. But these guys keep me on my A game. We’re continually pushing each other.”

Ohio State has earned the nickname DBU because of all of the defensive backs it has sent to the NFL in recent years. But we might need to start calling it DB Killer U given the havoc the Buckeyes have been causing — and, apparently, will continue to cause — for opposing secondaries.

In the last two seasons, Ohio State quarterbacks Dwayne Haskins (2018) and Justin Fields (2019) have thrown 91 touchdown passes. Haskins' primary targets were senior captains Parris Campbell, Terry McLaurin and Johnnie Dixon. Last season, Hill and fellow seniors Austin Mack and Binjimen Victor had a chance to leave a lasting impression, working with Fields, who transferred in from Georgia.

With Fields back for presumably his final season, and being touted as a Heisman Trophy front-runner, the Buckeyes keep giving him weapons.

Tom Brady should be so lucky.

To a man, the newest wave of reinforcements doesn't seemed concerned with being "The Man."

“It just tells us that we’re not afraid of anything," Smith-Njigba said of the stacked competition at receiver. "We compete, we all know our talents, we all know what we’re good at and we’re all confident in our abilities to play here and do well at this university.”

The emergence of former Buckeye Michael Thomas as arguably the best wide receiver in the NFL has become a great recruiting tool for OSU. Terry McLaurin's impact this past season as a rookie for the Washington Redskins also left an impression.

McLaurin became the first receiver in NFL history to catch at least five passes and a TD in each of his first three games. He finished the season with 58 receptions for 919 yards and 7 touchdowns.

“Terry McLaurin may not have had the standout numbers (at OSU) that he might ideally have had at a smaller school," Scott said. "But the thing I (noticed) was the development he was able to get. Regardless of what the numbers are, the development is going to be there. So when you get to that next level where you are able to get those big numbers, you will."

One month in, does Scott feel like he's developing?

“Absolutely," he said. "You’ve got no choice to grow. I can feel my muscles grow just from being here. You get thrown in right away. I don’t even feel like a freshman here. You go right in, they throw you into the water with no life jacket. You either swim or you drown."

In high school, these guys basically walked on water:

*Julian Fleming, 6-2, 197: Pennsylvania's career leader in touchdown receptions (77) and receiving yards (5,514). Had 72 catches for 1,582 yards and 22 touchdowns as a senior at Southern Columbia.

*Jaxon Smith-Njigba: 6-1, 188: Named the Texas 6A State Player of the Year. Compiled 5,346 career receiving yards and 82 touchdowns in 44 career games for Rockwall High School. In 13 games as a senior, had 104 catches for 2,094 yards and 35 touchdowns.

*Gee Scott, 6-3, 207: Had 76 receptions for 1,453 yards and 15 touchdowns during his senior season for Eastside Catholic High School.

*Mookie Cooper, 5-9, 195: Third-rated player in the state of Missouri. Averaged nearly 30 yards per reception as a junior, hauling in 29 passes for 869 yards and 9 touchdowns while helping Trinity Catholic win its first-ever Class 3 state championship.

None of the four has more motivation to get on the field early than Cooper. His state's high school governing body made him sit out his senior year after he transferred to a school that would allow him to enroll early at OSU.

"No lie, I cried for probably four weeks straight," he said. "After school, I'd just go sit in the car and sit there and cry, then go work out. I thought I was depressed for a moment.

"(Being at OSU) just proves how much a person really wants it. A lot of people, you got a year off of not doing something, certain people they might just sit around, have fun with it. It just tells you how much (I) really want it, what (I'm) coming for."

OSU coach Ryan Day said all four have a chance to crack the two-deep roster. Smith-Njigba and Cooper will be groomed as possible replacements for Hill as a slot receiver/H back.

"I have a long way to go," Fleming said. "Consider I went from like the top of high school and then you're right back at the bottom. And now you know it's a gradual process. And you just have to continue to compete with everybody and outwork the man next to you, day in and day out, to continue to work your way up those ranks and earn a spot."

Ohio State has almost never recruited the Pacific Northwest, so Scott has a chance to be a trail blazer.

"Shoot, if someone told you there was a million dollars at the other side of the country, you’d go to the other side of the country," he said. "This is a million dollar place."