Ohio State doesn’t hand out first-team reps lightly to freshmen, though there have been exceptions. Freshman WR Chris Henry Jr. could join this exclusive club, as he competes in the depth chart under Jeremiah Smith’s shadow. Head coach Ryan Day, however, wants him to separate himself from the competition and stand out from the get-go.

“He has to have the mentality that he wants to play from day one,” Day told reporters after Tuesday’s practice. “That he’s starting in the first game, that should be his goal. Now, whether he does or not, we’ll see.

“But he has all the traits. He has all the skills. He has everything that we thought he would be in recruiting, we’ve seen in the field. So that’s exciting.”

Had Smith not been in the picture, Chris Henry Jr. would have been the player that everyone had their eyes on. The five-star recruit was the No. 2 WR prospect in the 2026 class; it made sense for someone like him to go to Ohio State, because that is where the best receivers in college football (and in the NFL) are made. Nobody is a bigger winner than Ryan Day, who will now have not one, but a double-headed attack in the WR room in Smith and Henry. But will the latter be as elite as Smith was when he was a freshman?

Reports out of spring ball suggest he’s been “touching” just about every Buckeye CB thrown his way. In one rep, he even outshone presumed-CB1 Jermaine Mathews Jr. in a deep ball. According to Buckeye Sports Bulletin, Henry Jr. stood out in the 7-on-7 drills. The coaches are excited to exploit his elite potential, which saw him tally 1,127 yards in 71 catches as a sophomore. He is entering the 2026 season after a brutal knee injury in 2025, but Henry remains a wideout that defenses have to take note of.

But Day is not giving him any special treatment for the star player. Henry Jr. is also being put on reps for punt returning and blocking with Smith and Brandon Inniss. Day mentioned that OSU greats before him — Garrett Wilson, Chris Olave, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba — have all started from here. But while they were able to break away from the competition, it will be difficult for Henry to do so with Smith in play. Ryan Day also addressed this unique situation.

“I think about Jeremiah. He was an Iron Buckeye, and that’s a big deal around here. One of the first freshmen to ever be an Iron Buckeye around here, and found his way on the field to be a starter right out on week one. So it’ll be the same challenge for Chris.” 

Jeremiah Smith’s 1,315 receiving yards as a freshman are legendary. But it’s time now for him to shape the ones who will carry the OSU torch after him. The iconic WR has already picked Henry Jr. as the “next one up,” he told Buckey Sports Bulletin.

While Chris Henry Jr. is chasing a starting job, someone else just made Ohio State history in a completely different way.

Brock Boyd joins elite company as black stripe falls early

At Ohio State, losing your black stripe is a statement. When new players begin practice as Ohio State men, the iconic red stripe that runs down the center of the helmet is hidden with a black one. Only after they prove themselves worthy of the team is the black one removed, formally inducting them as a Buckeye. WR Brock Boyd has done it this year after just six practices.

After Urban Meyer installed this tradition in 2012, only two freshmen have ever done it faster: Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate. The latter is set to continue OSU’s tradition of being a Round 1 pick in the 2026 draft, and Smith will do so whenever he declares for the draft. Who knows if Boyd is also on that track?

Boyd is also the fourth WR to uphold the legacy of the room in producing the first player to lose their black stripe in a season. He follows Quincy Porter, who did so in 2025, Smith, and Tate. Now, his name sits alongside a lineage that includes Marvin Harrison Jr. and Garrett Wilson, guys who shed their black stripes earlier than their batchmates.

This means that Ryan Day has the best talent in his camp when it comes to the WR room. It has been a core strength of Ohio State football, and Chris Henry Jr. and Brock Boyd will be the next players to make a difference.