Fight to the End: Dontre Wilson's Last Rodeo

By D.J. Byrnes on December 21, 2016 at 2:15 pm
Fight to the End: Ohio State senior H-Back Dontre Wilson.
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Ohio State's 2016 senior class has a chance to win its second national championship in three years with two more victories this season. Before kickoff against Clemson in the College Football Playoff, Eleven Warriors will take a brief look back at each player's time in Columbus.

WHERE HE'S FROM

Dontre Wilson, a four-star 2013 running back from DeSoto, Texas, committed to Chip Kelly's Oregon over Mack Brown's Texas in May 2012. He did so partly to avoid a potential RB logjam in Austin and partly to become the next De'Anthony Thomas in Eugene.

"[Oregon] just fits me perfect,” Wilson told ESPN. “I am the same size as all of their running backs right now. I have the speed and the quickness to play a part in their offense."

The newest Oregon Duck noted he wanted to visit Ohio State that summer but "nothing is promised." 

Fast forward to January 2013. Ohio State finished that season 12-0. Oregon finished 12-1 with a Fiesta Bowl win over Kansas State. However, the Philadelphia Eagles lured Kelly away from Eugene with a five-year, $32 million deal on Jan. 16.

Urban Meyer made his move for a prospect that seemed destined to play the "Percy Harvin position."

Wilson officially visited Columbus on Jan. 25. Six days later, he officially visited Texas and unofficially visited Oklahoma State.

On Feb. 4, two days before National Signing Day, the famous running back from DeSoto ended his recruit by flipping from Oregon to "the university of Ohio State."

TOP MOMENTS

His commitment melted Eleven Warriors' servers as fans rushed to immediately set expectations.

Here are a few comments from our commitment piece, "Dontre Wilson Makes No. 24."

This is shaping up to be the best class I have ever seen at tOSU.

The fact that Chip Kelly recruited this guy to be HIS guy at running back and now we have him needs to get everybody ridiculously excited.

Hell yeah!! Buckeye and he's gonna dominate! Marshall, Wilson, and Elliott on the field at the same time. Crazy.

My fellow Buckeyes should know; Desoto HS is a powerhouse Texas high school program with D1 prospects all over the field and Dontre Wilson is the creme de la creme

This guy really looks a lot like Jeff Demps to me.

Loved EZE but this is going to make his potential miss easier to swallow if he makes the wrong choice.

Internet commenters weren't the only ones fueling the Wilson hype train. Wilson earned praise from then-quarterback Braxton Miller three days after Wilson arrived on campus.

From a July 26 article entitled, "Meet Dontre Wilson: The Next Big Thing."

“I feel like he better be starting this year,” Miller said. “He can play multiple spots – H (slot) and Z (wide receiver), he can run any route and he can also come in the backfield and take handoffs. I feel like he can help us in every aspect."

Wilson, however, didn't set the world on fire his freshman year at H-Back.

"He’s got to become a football player. Right now, he’s a novelty," Meyer said in October 2013. "We're working really hard to make him a football player. Right now he's a hood ornament."

To Wilson's credit, he was at least a hood ornament capable of throwing a punch, as he showed a month later in Ann Arbor when the 5'10" Texan knuckledusted a crop of Michigan undesirables:

Wilson finished his freshman season with 22 receptions for 210 yards and 2 touchdowns. He added 31 rushing attempts for 250 yards and a touchdown.

In 2014, after a year in Mickey Marotti's strength dojo, Wilson looked to increase explosive plays by finally breaking shoestring tackles that thwarted after-catch production his freshman year.

At Michigan State, Wilson caught a seven-yard touchdown reception in the early fourth quarter to put Ohio State up on Michigan State, 42-24. However, Wilson broke his foot in that game, which hampered him throughout the rest of the championship season.

The foot injury nagged him into 2015, too, which played a role in Wilson posting the worst statistical year of his career: 7 receptions for 63 yards and no touchdowns. He didn't rush the ball once.

With a plethora of his 2013 recruiting classmates eyeing jumps to the NFL, Wilson announced his return to Ohio State before the Fiesta Bowl:

Wilson promised his best for last.

"I definitely feel like I'm over [the injuries]. I've been doing a lot of treatment over the past two years on it," Wilson said this summer. "Went to Oregon, got some custom-made cleats from Nike. I feel like that will help as well."

Thus far, his biggest moment came in Madison, Wisconsin during Week 7. Ohio State faced 2nd and 11 from its own 36-yard line, trailing 23-20.

J.T. Barrett found a streaking Wilson 43 yards down the field, deep into Badger territory. 

If Ohio State doesn't pull that off, perhaps they lose next week at Penn State and play in the Outback Bowl instead. But we'll never know that timeline, in part thanks to Dontre.

And while it will never get the props it deserves, Wilson was unquestionably the team's best tweeter this year as well:

OVERARCHING CONTRIBUTION

Wilson is poised to leave Ohio State 4-0 against Michigan with at least one national title.

He never lived up to the hype created by his legendary high school highlight reel, but he never quit on his team. 

With only two games left in his career, Dontre still beloved by teammates and fans alike. If he plays the two best games of his career in his final two outings, Columbus will immortalize him.

That could be an important lesson for any former blue-chip currently buried on Ohio State's roster.

WHERE HE'S HEADED

Wilson is poised to graduate from Ohio State this spring in Criminology. He will likely take his shot in the NFL, despite questions about his size and injury history.

Even if he goes undrafted, Wilson could catch on with a team as an undrafted free agent, like Tyvis Powell or Jalin Marshall before him. Multiple NFL teams will offer him a flyer on his pedigree alone.

Regardless, he will be raising Fat Rat, an indomitable 2034 speedster out of Columbus, Ohio.

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