Carnell Tate selected No. 4 overall to the Tennessee Titans, Arvell Reese goes No. 5 to the New York Giants, Sonny Styles selected No. 7 by the Washington Commanders, Caleb Downs goes No. 11 to the Dallas Cowboys.
Ohio State's lead in the WRU race continues to grow.
With Carnell Tate getting selected with the No. 4 pick by the Tennessee Titans in the first round of the 2026 NFL draft, the former Buckeye extended the streak of OSU having a first-round wide receiver to five consecutive years.
"It's a blessing to be able to continue that long line of success and those guys who paved the road ahead of me," Tate told Eleven Warriors on Wednesday. "It's my time to pave the road for the next guy."
Tate joins Emeka Egbuka (No. 19 pick in 2025), Marvin Harrison Jr. (No. 4 pick in 2024), Jaxon Smith-Njigba (No. 20 in 2023), Garrett Wilson (No. 10 in 2022) and Chris Olave (No. 11 in 2022) as Ohio State wide receivers who have been drafted in the first round since 2022. The Buckeyes hold the all-time record for first-round draft picks at wide receiver with 14.
Tate tied Harrison for the highest draft selection ever for a wide receiver from Ohio State.
"It just speaks for what the program has done for those guys and how it's set them up for success at the next level," Tate said of the first-round wide receivers recently.
No other school has had more than two first-round wide receivers in that span. In fact, only two other programs have had more than two consecutive drafts with first-round wide receivers: Alabama (2020-22) and Tennessee (1982-84), which saw one selected in the first round of three straight drafts.
In 2025, the Buckeyes became the first school to have wide receivers taken in the first round in four consecutive drafts, and it was the first time OSU ever had first-round picks from the same position group in four straight drafts. Those records have now been extended to five. Jeremiah Smith is set to extend that streak to six consecutive years in 2027.
To put that in perspective, not only nationally but in Columbus, after Ted Ginn Jr. and Anthony Gonzalez were each selected in the first round of the 2007 NFL draft, the Buckeyes didn't have a wide receiver selected in the first round between 2008 and 2021. That said, former OSU wideouts Michael Thomas (second-round pick in 2016) and Terry McLaurin (third-rounder in 2019) were still Pro Bowlers.
On April 15, Tate discussed his decision to go to Ohio State on the Rich Eisen Show and spoke about how Buckeye wide receivers become so great, a trend that is set to continue even though Brian Hartline is no longer in Columbus.
"It was my dream school. I always grew up a Buckeye. ... Ultimately, if you want to go first-round as a receiver, you go to Ohio State."@carnelltate joins the @RichEisenShow and talks about why he chose to attend Ohio State pic.twitter.com/nRoKoWN8hH
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) April 15, 2026
"Ultimately, if you want to go first-round as a receiver, you go to Ohio State," Tate said. “I think it’ll continue to go on the trajectory it is now,” he continued. “I believe it was Receiver U before Hartline got there, and it ultimately will be Receiver U after he leaves.”
