Marvin Harrison’s case for the Heisman, as told by those who know him best

Marvin Harrison entered the 2023 season as the most highly touted wide receiver in college football. However, his odds to be voted as the best player in college football were still a bit of a long shot.

Odds that many, specifically on his Ohio State roster, were surprised by, but knew they’d serve as motivation for the All-America wideout from St. Joe’s Prep.

Ask those closest to him within the program and they’ll tell the tale of a player whose work ethic is why he’s one of college football’s best — and why he’s widely considered a first-round NFL draft pick.

“I don’t see how he’s not in the mix,” said Kyle McCord, quarterback at Ohio State, who was also Harrison’s teammate at the Prep. “I mean, obviously what he’s done, especially these last few games, I think, I don’t know if we’ve seen kind of a stretch like that, just how consistent he is, how reliable he is. He’s done a great job and obviously, he’s a lot of fun to play with.”

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Heading into Saturday’s game against Wisconsin (7:30 p.m., NBC), Harrison, who’s coming off an impressive game against then-No. 7 Penn State, might just be the odds-on, non-quarterback favorite to win the Heisman Trophy.

Ohio State head coach Ryan Day told reporters following the Penn State game that if you’re looking for Harrison on campus you’ll most likely find him standing near the football-pitching machine that was retrofitted so that Harrison can throw balls to himself.

Hours after practice, the North Philly native stays at the practice facility chasing down balls, working on routes, and quietly separating himself from the pack.

“I mean, he’s in there early in the morning, he’s out there late at night,” Day said. “After practice, however long we practice and practice gets done, I’ll go up and eat, and he’ll still be out there on the jogs, going through the routine. He’ll go out there and throw it with Kyle [McCord], and then he’ll get on the machine that he has.”

“You should see this machine, he can actually feed it and then he presses the button and it shoots it to himself,” laughed Day. “Our [assistant athletic director for sports performance] coach [Mickey Mariotti] made a rule that he has to bring somebody with him now, though, he can’t just go on his own. If anything, that’s something that’s a legacy that he’ll leave behind.”

In a game where Penn State’s defense kept a spy on Harrison in an attempt to minimize his production, the 6-foot-4 junior finished with 11 catches for a game-high 162 yards and a game-clinching touchdown in the fourth quarter. He entered the game as the record holder for receiving yards in the series after his 11-catch, 185-yard performance against the Nittany Lions last season.

Two weeks before in a win over Maryland, he finished with 163 receiving yards against double coverage — also a game-high.

In his three seasons at Ohio State, Harrison has amassed 2,168 yards and 23 touchdowns in 33 games. He’s on pace to eclipse his breakout sophomore season in which he had 1,263 yards, placing him among the top 10 in FBS play.

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Should Harrison hear his name called at the Dec. 9 ceremony, he would become just the fifth player from the Philly area to win the honor, with the last being 2021 winner in Alabama quarterback Bryce Young, who was born in Philly.

With his “favorite” quarterback and pitching machine in tow, it would appear Harrison’s odds are looking up.

“I think most teams, the first thing they look at is how do I take away Marvin Harrison?” said Day. “[Against Penn State] we targeted him 16 times. I think he was open on most of those 16 plays. I haven’t seen everybody play across the country, but it’s hard for me to find somebody better. I don’t know how he gets on these lists or doesn’t get on these lists, but to me, he’s one of the most special players in college football.”

Inquirer writer Matt Ryan contributed to this report.