Notebook: Marvin Harrison Jr. shows his toughness in a career-best game, Cade Stover reminds Ryan Day of Binjimen Victor and Day takes the blame for C.J. Stroud’s half-ending sack.
With Jaxon Smith-Njigba sidelined for the fifth time this season and Miyan Williams knocked out of the game with apparent hand and knee injuries on just his second carry of the day, Ohio State needed its other offensive players to step up. And no one did so in a bigger way than Marvin Harrison Jr.
The sophomore wideout did all of that despite having to leave the game briefly in the third quarter after landing awkwardly on his shoulder and being unable to feel or move his arm for a short period of time. The toughness Harrison showed in the process was what impressed Ryan Day most about his performance in Happy Valley.
While Julian Fleming’s return to his home state to play against a school that recruited him heavily drew more headlines in the week leading up to the game, Saturday was also a homecoming for Harrison, who grew up about three hours away from Penn State in Philadelphia. Knowing it could be his only opportunity to play at Penn State if he enters the 2024 NFL draft, Harrison wanted to take advantage of his chance to have a big game in his home state, and he certainly did.