Marvin Harrison Jr. Hauls in Three Touchdowns in Monster Performance Against Arkansas State

By Griffin Strom on September 10, 2022 at 1:40 pm
Marvin Harrison Jr.
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Marvin Harrison Jr. and C.J. Stroud couldn't quite find a rhythm with one another in Ohio State's season opener. That changed against Arkansas State.

The sophomore wide receiver was Stroud's top target against the Red Wolves, as Harrison pulled in 137 yards and two touchdowns in the first half alone. This marks Harrison's first-ever 100-yard game for Ohio State, and his first touchdown since scoring three of them in the Rose Bowl last season.

Ohio State began the game without two of its top-four wideouts, as both Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Julian Fleming sat out of the Buckeyes' Week 2 matchup with injuries. While Emeka Egbuka stepped up to lead Brian Hartline's receiving corps against the Fighting Irish, Harrison filled that role on Saturday.

Harrison's first score came on Ohio State's first possession of the game, with Stroud hitting him on a 42-yard catch-and-run to the end zone. The Buckeyes scored on all three of their first three drives to start out, but after their first three-and-out of the afternoon, Harrison stepped up again.

Streaking down the right sideline in the second quarter, Stroud connected with Harrison for another 42-yard score that put the Buckeyes up 24-9 after the extra point.

Harrison almost had another score earlier in the half, as Stroud hit him with a pass just before the goal line on a red zone possession, but the pass was punched out of his hands to break up the play. 

Ohio State finished the first half with a 15-point lead on Arkansas State, and Harrison was responsible for the bulk of Stroud's 204 passing yards through 30 minutes of action.

Harrison wasn't done, though, as he pulled in perhaps his most impressive score of the day in the final few seconds of the third quarter. Although Stroud had Cade Stover wide open over the middle, it didn't matter, because Harrison came down with a sensational catch in double coverage in the corner of the end zone. The 30-yard score helped put Ohio State ahead, 45-12.

Now with two three-touchdown games in his Buckeye career (and in his past three games), Harrison is just the second Ohio State wideout to match that accomplishment. The first Buckeye to do so was Joey Galloway, who caught three scores against Michigan State in 1993 and Purdue in 1994. 

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