Ohio State football WR Marvin Harrison Jr. injures right ankle at Notre Dame
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Ohio State wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. sprained his right ankle in the third quarter of the Buckeyes' 17-14 win at Notre Dame on Saturday night.
Harrison was blocking Irish cornerback Cam Hart on TreVeyon Henderson’s 61-yard touchdown run when safety Xavier Watts rolled into his legs after diving in an attempt to tackle Henderson.
It left Harrison in enough pain that two trainers assisted him off the field at Notre Dame Stadium after examining his ankle and leg for several minutes. He put little weight on his right leg at first.
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Harrison was not sidelined for an extended period of time. After Notre Dame went on a touchdown drive that lasted more than seven minutes, he returned for Ohio State’s following possession and caught a 6-yard pass from quarterback Kyle McCord to start off the series.
"I thought he showed he showed toughness," Buckeyes coach Ryan Day said. "He got his ankle pretty good.
The right ankle of Harrison was heavily taped up as he was back with the offense. It was the same ankle that he sprained last season, though it was not an injury that kept him out at any point last season as he appeared in all 13 games for the Buckeyes in 2022. When he left the locker room after the victory, his right ankle was wrapped in ice.
Harrison finished with only three receptions for 32 yards as he drew double coverage. Notre Dame bracketed him with a safety at times. But Day said the focus on Harrison from the Irish's defense left other wide receivers open.
It was often Emeka Egbuka, who caught seven passes for 96 yards, including a 21-yard reception on a third-and-19 on the Buckeyes' game-winning drive that set them up at the 1-yard line and positioned them for a score.
"His presence made a huge impact on the game," Day said. "If he doesn’t come back after the sprain, maybe he doesn’t draw the attention that opened up Emeka."
Looking back on Harrison’s return in his postgame news conference, Day turned to quarterback Kyle McCord who was seated next to him near the podium.
“Every time we talk about bracket, what do we say?” Day said.
“Find the 1-on-1,” McCord said.
“That’s it,” Day said. “Someone’s going to be in a 1-on-1, so they have to win.”
Joey Kaufman covers Ohio State football for The Columbus Dispatch. Follow him on Facebook and X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. He can also be contacted at jkaufman@dispatch.com.
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State WR Marvin Harrison Jr. exits with injury at Notre Dame
