How Buckeyes prepped Garrett Wilson, Chris Olave for Pro Day, NFL careers

COLUMBUS – Garrett Wilson used his 4.38 speed to sprint upfield, breaking off a 14-yard out route by lasering his way toward the sideline at the 48-yard marker of Ohio State’s indoor practice field.

Upon snagging a C.J. Stroud pass that was rocketed straight into the same mitts that once made him a five-star receiver, Wilson toe-tapped the sideline with both feet in bounds. It had a dramatic feel to it, Wilson having more than a foot to spare between the turf and chalk but still stomping on the ground like a first-grader playing hopscotch on the elementary school playground.

Chris Olave followed Wilson one rep later, the same route and same result: Olave flipping his hands to form a net and cradling Stroud’s pass before the same toe-tap action.

The two star receivers have only been required to get one foot down in bounds along the sidelines in college careers that spanned four years for Olave and three for Wilson.

But it all still looked smooth for both. Looked seamless. Natural.

That tracks.

They had been preparing for Wednesday’s Pro Day workout since the first time they stepped foot in Columbus.

For Wilson, it started with a pitch from Brian Hartline while he was racking up end-zone celebrations in Austin, Texas. The Lake Travis High School star always knew the end game: win a national championship and get to the NFL after three years in college.

To do that, he needed a coach who was going to teach the specific things that would make him a great receiver in the pros. Wilson bought into Hartline’s pitch in how he would go about doing that.

“He’s done all that and then some,” Wilson said on Wednesday.

There is a popular saying among younger circles: ten toes down. It means to be fully committed to something and that you’re going to put 100 percent effort into it. Hartline has been ten toes down in helping Wilson, Olave and his entire receivers room get ten toes down.

“Individual drills, you gotta get two feet down with the toe-tap drill,” Olave said. “I’m glad he teaches that. Coach Hart is an NFL guy so I’m glad he’s here, and he’s one of the best in the country at what he does.”

Added Wilson: “Coach Hart coaches it to only get two feet in. So when we’re going through our drill work and catching balls on the sideline and all that, it’s two feet in – otherwise it don’t really mean nothing.”

Olave and Wilson’s mindsets were the same to start their career, saying they had been working on the aspects that would make them great NFL receivers since their first year at Ohio State. Since their first practice.

They wanted to have that focus. They were also forced into it.

“Everything I teach is always geared to the next level,” Hartline said. “I don’t coach anything at a reduced rate for the college level. I have no interest in that. If you’re gonna be an elite NFL receiver, you’re gonna be more than plenty good enough in college. I’m trying to coach and teach you to be a great NFL receiver. Anything that applies to that, that’s what we coach, and that’s the standard we hold to.”

It’s not limited to just one aspect of the position – like two feet in bounds that we keep harping on – that Hartline and the Buckeyes focus on. Or eliminating an extra step at the top of the route before making your break.

It goes much deeper than that.

“He’s training us to get to that [level],” Wilson said. “He’s training us to go up against the best corner we’re gonna face, not the worst corner. He’s training us to face the Pat Surtains and Stephon Gillmores of the world. Just do everything at the highest level.

“Just your approach to the game [is the biggest thing he’s helped with]. There’s a lot of things that correlate with football that’s not just on the field. The meeting room, being locked in during that, I’d say that’s probably the biggest thing that he emphasizes that’ll translate to the next level.

If you want to know why Hartline is seen as one of the country’s best recruiters and probably the nation’s best receivers coach, there’s not a much better example than in his quote above and in Wilson’s words. It’s that approach that appeals so clearly and consistently to high school stars, and it’s now being proven to work.

For as much praise that’s heaped onto Hartline, he still has yet to develop a first-round draft pick. Parris Campbell (second round), Terry McLaurin (third round) and K.J. Hill (seventh round) are the Buckeyes receivers drafted since Hartline became the full-time receivers coach in 2019. That lack of a first-rounder really remains the only knock on him from opposing college coaches who negatively recruit against him.

That’s going to change in 35 days. Wilson and Olave are each going to be taken in the first round, likely in the first 25 picks. Wilson is projected in most mock drafts to be selected within the top 15 picks – some mocks have him as high as No. 8 overall – and Olave will not be far behind. Mel Kiper Jr. (ESPN), Dan Brugler (The Athletic) and Daniel Jeremiah (NFL Network) each have Olave mocked to the Philadelphia Eagles at No. 19 overall.

Their first-round status was already a given heading into Wednesday’s Pro Day. But Wilson and Olave’s performances sealed up any tiny amount of lingering doubt. Their array of outs, quick inside slants, corner routes, fly patterns and more showcased the crisp route-running that became synonymous with each throughout their Big Ten careers. The toe taps, the quick flips of hands to catch passes from all angles and the swift change-of-direction and acceleration after the catch displayed the rest.

Hartline will have waited three years before being able to put developed a guy into a first-rounder on his résumé. On April 28, he will wipe out one bird with two stones. Hey, maybe even to the Birds.