Weighing Marvin Harrison Jr.'s Heisman chances: Look no further than Devonta Smith

Marvin Harrison Jr. is the wide receiver in college football this upcoming season. The position starts with him at Ohio State has he looks to boast yet another impressive season for the Buckeyes.

Even so, how can he better break into the race for the Heisman Trophy in 2023? On3’s Andy Staples says all that he’ll need is Devonta Smith’s blueprint from back in 2020. In his evaluation of Heisman sleepers for this fall, he started by breaking down the difference between Harrison Jr.’s prospects as an NFL player compared to a Heisman hopeful.

“One guy who, if you talk to NFL Draft people, they love him, a top-five pick guaranteed? But his odds (for the Heisman Trophy) are a little bit different because of the position that he plays? Marvin Harrison Jr., wide receiver at Ohio State,” Staples said. “(He’s) anywhere between +2200 and +2700 depending on what book you’re looking at.”

From there, Staples dove in to his point of the Smith comparison. Coming in to 2020, Smith was just as much of a longshot, and even more so, to win the Heisman. However, he put himself in position by being “the secret sauce” for Alabama’s offense that year with 117 receptions for 1,856 receiving yards and 23 touchdowns.

Fast forward to 2023 and, in Columbus, Staples believe’s Harrison Jr.’s case could stem from that exact same viewpoint in the end.

“This is the best receiver in college football. Now, we go back to Devonta Smith winning the Heisman in 2020? He started the season at +10,000. And he was coming off of a year where he led Alabama in receiving and they had Jaylen Waddle and Henry Ruggs also,” said Staples. “If we’d looked closer, we probably would have realized how special he was going into that season. But, at the time, the thought was he’s pretty good, these other guys are really good. But we weren’t looking at him as a game-changing guy and that evolved as the season went on. There is no one who watched college football last season who doesn’t already think Marvin Harrison Jr. is a game-changing guy.”

“I think what you saw with Devonta Smith? Because, remember, Mac Jones was a finalist that same year for the Heisman. But I think voters said this is the guy who’s the secret sauce – Devonta Smith,” Staples said. “I think people will feel that way about Marvin Harrison Jr. if Ohio State’s offense is incredible. Which it probably is going to be pretty good.”

As far as statistics, they’re going to be there for Harrison Jr.. He posted 77 catches for 1,263 yards and 14 touchdowns as CJ Stroud’s go-to option for an Ohio State team that made the College Football Playoff.

With that in mind, Staples says that, if he can be front and center again for the Buckeyes in ’23, Harrison Jr. can outplay his odds and be right in the thick of things when it comes to this year’s Heisman Trophy.