Scarlet Sunrise: Curtis Samuel, Garrett Wilson to switch back to Ohio State jersey numbers

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Curtis Samuel, Garrett Wilson to switch back to Ohio State jersey numbers

Former Ohio State playmakers Curtis Samuel and Garrett Wilson are planning on switching back to the jersey numbers they wore in college for their respective NFL teams. Samuel is making the change to No. 4 this season. Wilson, however, tweeted that his return to No. 5 won’t happen until the 2024 season.

Samuel, who plays for the Washington Commanders, had previously worn No. 10 since he was drafted into the league by the Carolina Panthers in 2017. Wilson, the reigning AP Offensive Rookie of the Year, currently wears No. 17 for the New York Jets.

NFL wide receivers couldn’t wear single-digit numbers until 2021. With quarterback Taylor Heinicke now on the Atlanta Falcons, No. 4 was available in Washington. As for No. 5 in the green and white? Jets quarterback Mike White, now with the Miami Dolphins, wore it last season.

Samuel, a standout H-Back at Ohio State, is coming off a bounce-back season in Washington. After playing in only five games in 2021 because of groin and hamstring injuries, the Commanders receiver caught 64 passes for 656 yards and four touchdowns in 2022 to go along with one score and 187 yards on the ground, courtesy of 38 carries.

Wilson was one of two former Buckeyes wide receivers to eclipse the 1,000-yard mark in their first NFL season last year, the other being Chris Olave of the New Orleans Saints. Wilson’s 83 receptions were the 20th most of any player in the league in 2022.

Six burning questions facing Ohio State after spring ball

The Ohio State spring season is now in the rear view mirror. We learned a lot during the Buckeyes’ 15 practices across March and April.

For instance, there are already some early returns on the players Ohio State acquired during the first transfer window. Schematic defensive adjustments, like making the nickel more of a third cover corner and choosing not to touch the “JACK” during spring, came to light. And, more generally, the emphasis on competition and the prevalence of winner-loser situations couldn’t be ignored.

But there are still a handful of unanswered questions facing the Buckeyes. The biggest of all: Who will be Ohio State’s starting quarterback next fall, Kyle McCord or Devin Brown?

That’s just one of six burning questions Lettermen Row is examining in this spring wrap-up piece.

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Kyle McCord on 11-2 record last two seasons: ‘at a lot of schools, that’s great, but not here’

Ohio State’s three goals haven’t changed. The Buckeyes want to beat Michigan, win the Big Ten Championship and win the National Championship. To do so, they need their first 12-plus-win season since 2019.

Quarterback Kyle McCord isn’t content with going 11-2 again, like the Buckeyes have the last two years.

“You don’t beat the Team Up North, you don’t win a national championship, you don’t achieve any of your goals, he told ESPN’s Heather Dinich. “It definitely speaks volumes that 11-2 at a lot of schools, that’s great, but not here.”

For more on McCord and the Buckeyes’ standard he speaks of, go here.

Counting down

Buckeyes vs. Indiana: 134 days

Buckeyes vs. Michigan: 218 days

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