Chris Olave was a 3 star prospect from Mission Hills high school, where he was a 3 sport athlete (he played basketball and ran track). The San Marcos, CA native earned offers from Tennessee, Michigan, and USC. He ultimately chose Ohio State. As a freshman in 2018, Chris Olave had muted production playing alongside Parris Campbell, J.K. Dobbins, and Terry McLaurin. After McLaurin and Campbell left Ohio State, Chris Olave broke out in his second season as a Buckeye.
As a sophomore, Chris Olave broke out as a very efficient receiver. He averaged 17.5 yards per reception while leading the team in receiving yards (840) by a wide margin. The next closest player had 636 yards. Olave demonstrated a high floor on relatively low target volume, posting 50 receiving yards or greater in 9 of his 13 games.
In his junior year, covid caused the B1G to shorten the regular season. Despite that, he led the team in receptions (50) and receiving yards (729). It’s important to note that while he led the team, he shared the field with Jameson Williams and Garrett Wilson.
2021 was Chris Olave’s senior season and his least productive on paper. He fell from being the reception and yardage leader the previous season to being the number 3 on his team, ceding the top spot to sophomore Jaxon Smith-Njigba. He still maintained a yards per reception greater than 14 ypr for the 4th year in a row. Olave earned an invite to the senior bowl, but chose not to attend. It was likely that he knew his value and felt he didn't need to prove anything else.
Chris Olave was selected in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft by the New Orleans Saints. If Michael Thomas comes back for the start of the season, Olave slots in as the number two. That’s a big if. More likely than not, Olave becomes the number one WR on day one. He represents the highest floor out of the first round rookie receivers.
