Marvin Harrison Jr. discusses growing chemistry with Kyle McCord since coming to Ohio State

Marvin Harrison Jr. and Kyle McCord are no strangers to each other, having played football together in high school, winning three-straight state titles. So when the duo came to Ohio State ahead of the 2021 season, the relationship was well on its way.

But then the two were stuck lower on the depth chart early in their careers. Harrison climbed up into significant playing time in 2022 before McCord seized the starting quarterback job in 2023.

And all the while, their bond off the field grew, Harrison said on the “Pat McAfee Show” on Friday afternoon.

“Then when we got to college, we both kind of had to wait our turns here sitting behind some great players. And our relationship has kind of developed more so off the field than on the field. He was my roommate my freshman year and we’ve just kind of bonded over time,” Harrison said.

The bond is evident on the field, too.

Harrison has caught 31 passes for 604 yards and five touchdowns so far in 2023 — all coming from McCord. And when McCord has thrown to the rest of Ohio State’s offensive weapons: 78 catches for 1047 yards and six touchdowns.

That’s 19.5 yards per catch for Harrison as opposed to 13.4 for the rest of the pass catchers.

McCord has had no trouble seeking out and finding Harrison this season. Much of that is certainly to do with the fact that Harrison is arguably the best player in college football and widely considered the top wideout. But having played together since they were teenagers doesn’t hurt, either.

“Kyle is my guy. We started playing with each other in our sophomore year of high school at St. Joes Prep. We went on to win three-straight state championships. So it was pretty good,” Harrison said.

Harrison wanted the challenge of Ohio State’s loaded receiver room and to play for Brian Hartline

The crowded wide receiving corps at Ohio State over the last couple of seasons may have forced some to look at other schools, but Harrison was up to the challenge.

Joining McAfee and Co. ahead of a clash with Penn State this weekend, Harrison dished on why he decided to go to Ohio State in the first place, despite how many mouths there were to feed for the Buckeyes on offense.

“Just the history, and then with me playing receiver, one of the big factors was coach [Brian] Hartline. He does (a) tremendous job with the receivers,” Harrison said. “I think the best thing about him is that he obviously recruits the best guys, like you said. We’re all very talented, but he develops your mind more than anything.

“I truly believe your mind can take you places that your body can’t. So he definitely does a great job of developing that, and I think that’s why he’s been so successful here.”