Ohio State senior receiver Chris Booker has traveled a long way to get here.

His journey stretches across multiple universities and includes one common drive: a desire to play football at any level.

“Football has always been a love of my life,” Booker said on Wednesday.

Growing up in St. Louis, Booker was a teammate of former Ohio State running back Ezekiel Elliot at John Burroughs School. He ran track and played basketball and baseball in high school, but football has always been the main focus for the man who now wears No. 86 at Ohio State.

Recruited minimally out of high school, he eventually chose to attend the University of Dayton in 2017 and play for the Flyers’ non-scholarship, FCS football team.

As a freshman, the wide receiver took a redshirt and was placed on Dayton’s scout team. He eventually won offensive player of the year for the scout team, but even with a seemingly bright future in Dayton, something wasn’t clicking for Booker.

He was losing the connection with football that he once held.

“At the end of my freshman year I was really kind of feeling like it wasn’t fit for me, and I should just move on with the rest of my life,” Booker said. “Find other opportunities elsewhere.”