Future Hall of Famer Larry Fitzgerald’s son Devin will make his debut in 2026 as part of the Fighting Irish. He is a four star recruit and Notre Dame plans to capitalize on his talents. But before all of this, he was just a kid playing football locally who happened to run into the most famous college football WR at the time: Marvin Harrison Jr.

“And he’s another guy that I like. I’m appreciative of him as a person because Devin met him over at a restaurant over here two years ago, his rookie year, and he didn’t know Devin from Adam and Devin didn’t even tell him who he was.” Larry recounted the story on the InTheBayouPod on May 29th. “He said, ‘My name is Devin, and I play football here locally’ and Marv spent 45 minutes out there on the bench in front of the restaurant after he just got done eating on a practice night and chop it up with my son.”

“And at the end of the conversation, he told him: ‘Hey, you know, my dad used to play for the Cardinals.’ And he was like, really, like that was not even a part of the conversation until the very end. And so, like me personally, I’m always pulling from Marvin Jr. I want to see him go crazy. I hope you go 1500, 20 touchdowns and does his thing.”

Casual NFL fans might only see Marvin Jr. as the Cardinals wide receiver who is yet to find his footing in the league. Still struggling to make his mark. But college football fans know the impact he carried during his days at Ohio State. He was only the second Biletnikoff Award Winner for the Buckeyes since Terry Glenn in 1995. He also became the first wide receiver in Ohio State Athletics history to earn unanimous All-American honors twice. 2023 Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year and 4th in Heisman voting. Suffice to say, Marvin was college football royalty.

His interaction with Devin Fitzgerald shows that the accolades clearly did not go to his head. The compliment coming from a Cardinals legend like Larry is well deserved. Not all NFL programs are made equal, and it will be tougher to find success in Arizona over teams like Philadelphia or Kansas City.

Drafted by the Cardinals in the first round (4th overall) of the 2024 NFL Draft, Marvin was supposed to change the franchise like Justin Jefferson did with the Vikings. He was the first non-QB selected from that year’s draft after Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, and Drake Maye. This isn’t the first time Larry Fitzgerald has praised the young wide receiver.

“I saw a guy who made a lot of plays,” Fitzgerald said, via the Arizona Republic’s Theo Mackie. “He did a really good job. When the ball came to him, he made his plays. He’s only gonna continue to get better, so I’m excited to see his Year 2.”

“If he ever needs anything, I told him, I’m always available for him any way I can be helpful,” Fitzgerald said. “But fortunately, he has a father who was a heck of a lot better than I was, so he can tap into him whenever he likes.”

Marvin Jr.’s Ordeal with the Cardinals

Marvin Harrison Jr.’s career with the Arizona Cardinals has been a mixed bag. There are flashes of record-tying rookie dominance followed by an injury-plagued sophomore slump. Over his two seasons in the NFL, Harrison Jr. has hauled in 103 receptions for 1,493 yards and 12 touchdowns.

He had an incredibly strong debut season, appearing in all 17 games. His 8 receiving touchdowns tied the Arizona Cardinals franchise rookie record. His 62 catches and 885 yards both ranked second in team history for a rookie, trailing only Anquan Boldin.

The 2025 season turned out to be another story altogether. A persistent foot injury completely derailed his momentum. He played just 12 games, severely limiting his statistical output to 41 catches and 608 yards. He missed most of the final two months of the season, making only three appearances over the Cardinals’ last eight games, and sitting out the regular-season finale.

Analysts also noted that he struggled to consistently shake NFL cornerbacks when active. He averaged just 2.79 yards of separation, which ranked near the bottom of the league (79th) for qualifying wideouts. Even if he is healthy for 2026, his quarterback has been shipped off and the current QB room is far from elite. The Buckeye legend will have to do more than most wide receivers to carry this dysfunctional cardinals team to any sort of success.