Till now, we have known Warren Sapp’s daughter, Mercedes, to be a hardcore Colorado fan. The 27-year-old’s father has been one of the most loyal staffers in Deion Sanders’ Colorado Buffaloes, serving as the CU graduate assistant, and so it is no surprise to see her cheer for the program. In fact, a few days ago, Mercedes posted an IG story praying that Shedeur Sanders “doesn’t go to the Saints” in the draft. But now, it looks like former Ohio State wide receiver Emeka Egbuka has her attention.

Egbuka was picked by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as the No. 19 overall pick of the 2025 Draft. This came after an exceptional season with OSU, where he set the school’s receptions record with 81 catches for 1,011 yards and 10 touchdowns. This also marked his second 1,000-yard receiving season, making him one of only three Ohio State receivers to accomplish this feat, alongside Jeremiah Smith and Marvin Harrison Jr. So, it was little wonder that Mercedes was gushing over him.

On April 24, Mercedes posted a screenshot of her chats on her IG story. She had been chatting with someone whose name read, “baby chaos coordinator 💕,” and Mercedes captioned the post as “🤭🤭🤭 when two girls LOVE football.” Egbuka made his way to her chat with her bestie.

The conversation went like this: Sapp’s daughter sent, “OH,” “I,” “O.” Her bestie light-heartedly replied, “WAIT IM BEHIND WHOO.” Mercedes kept on teasing a little more, “LMAOOO EGBUKA FROM OHIO STATE WR,” leading to a  “NO WAYYYYY,” from her friend. But Sapp’s daughter kept swooning over Egbuka and wrote, “NEEEEEEEEEEEED THAT YESSSS MAAAM HAHAHAHA.” But that’s not the end of Mercedes’ obsession with Egbuka.

In her next story, she shared Buccaneers’ post welcoming Egbuka welcoming him to Tampa Bay. What catches the eye is the caption for Mercedes’ story. She wrote, “prepare to be SICK of me 🤭” and added three heart emojis for good measure. Not many people would have predicted Egbuka getting hyped by Mercedes as he gears up for his NFL career.

Egbuka adds another dimension to the Buccaneers’ offense, rounding out a four-receiver set that’s built to exploit one-on-one matchups all over the field. His presence could also stretch defenses horizontally, opening up valuable lanes for backs like Bucky Irving and Rachaad White.

Still, with veterans Mike Evans and Chris Godwin firmly established, it would be a surprise to see Egbuka outproduce either of them early on. Before he becomes a go-to option, he’ll have to build chemistry and earn the confidence of quarterback Baker Mayfield.

While he prepares for his next chapter, he has someone other than Mercedes looking forward to his NFL start.

Brian Hartline’s WR factory strikes again with Emeka Egbuka 

Egbuka was part of the champion team that won OSU its ninth national title in January. With the 19th pick of the first round, the Buccaneers selected him, making Egbuka the first wideout the team has taken in the opening round since current General Manager Jason Licht began his tenure. The last time Tampa Bay had taken a wide receiver in the first round was in 2014, when they landed Mike Evans as seventh overall. As much as it’s a celebration in Todd Bowles’ squad, it’s an absolute proud moment for Egbuka’s former coach, Hartline. 

On April 24, the official Ohio State Football page on X posted, “Emeka Egbuka becomes @brianhartline 5th 1st Round WR. Being the 19th Pick of the 2025 NFL Draft 📈 #DevelopedHere | #WRU.” As a wide receivers coach, Hartline has cemented himself not only as a top recruiter. At the same time, he has left his mark as an elite talent developer. Having been developed by Hartline, wide receivers including Garrett Wilson, Chris Olave, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, and Marvin Harrison Jr. went off as first-round picks. 

Wilson (No. 10 overall, New York Jets), Olave (No. 11, New Orleans Saints) were selected in the first round of the 2022 NFL draft. Smith-Njigba (No. 20, Seattle Seahawks) was a first-round pick in 2023. Then came Harrison Jr., who became the highest-drafted wide receiver in Ohio State history (No. 4, Arizona Cardinals) in 2024. Kudos to Emeka Egbuka; he did not disappoint Brian Hartline.

And how could the coach now celebrate this big win? He then re-shared the Ohio State Football Page’s post. Ohio State’s NFL takeover? Still going strong.