• Follow us on Twitter @buckeyeplanet and @bp_recruiting, like us on Facebook! Enjoy a post or article, recommend it to others! BP is only as strong as its community, and we only promote by word of mouth, so share away!
  • Consider registering! Fewer and higher quality ads, no emails you don't want, access to all the forums, download game torrents, private messages, polls, Sportsbook, etc. Even if you just want to lurk, there are a lot of good reasons to register!

WR K.J. Hill (Official Thread)

K.J. HILL RISING IN THE OHIO STATE WIDE RECEIVER ROOM, COACHES SAY BIGGER ROLE COULD BE COMING IN OFFENSE

76441_h.jpg,qitok=c1oYe2Zd.pagespeed.ce.w6XNvYHD76.jpg


K.J. Hill found a soft spot in the defense, waited for the pass from J.T. Barrett, reached out and grabbed it near the 30-yard line and cut upfield. One side-step and dart later and Ohio State had 1st-and-goal at the 10-yard line.

Two snaps later, Curtis Samuel scored the eventual game-winning touchdown in the Buckeyes' 24-20 victory over Northwestern. But that wouldn't have happened had it not been for Hill's catch, the second-longest play from scrimmage on the day and easily the most explosive pass on an otherwise boring display from the Ohio State offense against the Wildcats.

“I think that was a game-changer, and he's a really good player,” Urban Meyer said of the play on Monday. “He's earning more and more playing time. Very reliable guy, good blocker, always in the right place, very good hands.”

The play earned Hill a chance to speak to the team after the Buckeyes finished off the Wildcats. He has seen his time in the Ohio State wide receiver rotation increase the last few weeks upon his return from an ankle injury that caused him to miss wins against Rutgers and Indiana. A terrific receiver that runs excellent routes, this doesn't come as a surprise to either Hill or his position coach Zach Smith. The play against Northwestern demonstrated that.

“I felt like it was a spark for the team but I had been hurt so I was trying to get my momentum back going,” Hill said after practice Wednesday. “I think that catch right there against Northwestern helped that.”

“We had high expectations. I expected him to do that,” Smith said. “He's just kind of fulfilled expectations so far I'm excited about where he's going to be.”

Meyer called Hill's progression "typical" for a player of his caliber on Wednesday but pointed out how the redshirt freshman always makes it a point to catch the ball with his hands and not his chest.

“He's coming up the ranks,” Meyer said. “Typical progression of a young person that takes his role pretty seriously. A very nice talent to him.”

Entire article: http://www.elevenwarriors.com/ohio-...es-say-bigger-role-could-be-coming-in-offense
 
Upvote 0
Kind of surprised by this... did pretty good but didn't really explode or anything

His 17 receptions for 254 yards and a TD is pretty modest compared to the other All-Freshman WRs:
Jawuan Harris (RUT) 39-481-3 TD
Donnie Corley (MIST) 33-453-3 TD

But looking at the Honorable Mention frosh WRs, the pickins were pretty slim:
Kekoa Crawford (scUM) 4-47-1 TD
Eddie McDoom (scUM) 5-59-0 TD
Tyler Johnson (MIN) 14-141-1 TD
 
Upvote 0
KJ should be the #2 receiver behind Brown at this point. There has not been nearly enough production from Campbell, McLaurin, and Clark to justify keeping KJ off the field.

It would be nice to see Victor and Mack start to elevate their game as well. We need the wide receivers to produce if we're going to have any chance against Clemson and Alabama.



EDIT: The stats back this up as well.

McLaurin - 10 rec, 107 yds, 2 tds
Clark - 6 rec, 47 yds
Campbell - 13 rec, 121 yds


The production from our wide receivers has been (to put it bluntly) terrible. Use the next several weeks of practice to mix things up.
 
Last edited:
Upvote 0
WIDE RECEIVER K.J. HILL MUST PLAY IMPORTANT ROLE IN OHIO STATE'S OFFENSE IN 2017

79417_h.jpg


If you placed a bet on who would score Ohio State's first touchdown of the 2016 football season, chances are you didn't shove your money under the name "K.J. Hill." A redshirt freshman buried among a slew of players in Zach Smith's wide receivers and on an offense that included J.T. Barrett, Curtis Samuel and Mike Weber, when Hill reeled in a 47-yard pass against Bowling Green to get the Buckeyes on the board, it came as a surprise to some.

Even the player himself.

“I didn’t think I was going to be that guy,” Hill said, “but I just got put in the position to do it so I just made the most of it.”

Hill caught another pass that day for 11 more yards, then didn't touch the ball again until Oct. 15 at Wisconsin. As the Buckeyes tried to figure out the best way to rotate their wide receivers, Hill often became forgotten. An ankle injury at Oklahoma then knocked him out for a few games, so we didn't hear his name over the public address system for more than a month.

That cannot be the case in 2017. Provided he remains healthy, Hill must be a crucial part to what Ohio State does on offense this fall with new coordinator Kevin Wilson running the show. Whether it is in the slot in an attempt to replace Samuel's production (not easy) or on the outside like against Bowling Green, Hill needs to be heavily involved.

“Every week he's getting better and better and better and better,” Smith said of Hill in November. “So we're really excited for him.”

Entire article: http://www.elevenwarriors.com/ohio-...important-role-in-ohio-states-offense-in-2017
 
Last edited:
Upvote 0
Buckeye Football Notebook: 'I'm a veteran now, so it's time to go'

Ohio State redshirt sophomore receiver K.J. Hill
was one of the brighter spots of the spring for the Buckeyes. Splitting reps at H-back with fourth-year junior Parris Campbell, Hill showed his coaches that he is going to be very involved in the offense this season.

What exactly did he do to catch everyone's eye?

"Probably just ballin’ out," Hill said this spring. "Got my confidence back. It’s my third year here. I’m a veteran now, so it’s time to go. I expected to be one of the leaders in the room as far as talking more and being more vocal and getting guys going. Bringing younger guys up. For myself, establishing myself as a playmaker. When you come in from high school the game is faster so you’ve got to adjust to that and learn how to read defenses and changes your routes. Everything has slowed down for me. That’s what experience brings."

Entire article: http://theozone.net/Ohio-State/Foot...l-Notebook-Im-a-veteran-now-so-its-time-to-go
 
Upvote 0
"Probably just ballin’ out," Hill said this spring. "Got my confidence back. It’s my third year here. I’m a veteran now, so it’s time to go. I expected to be one of the leaders in the room as far as talking more and being more vocal and getting guys going. Bringing younger guys up. For myself, establishing myself as a playmaker. When you come in from high school the game is faster so you’ve got to adjust to that and learn how to read defenses and changes your routes. Everything has slowed down for me. That’s what experience brings."


5458143662_f0752b18d3_b.jpg
 
Upvote 0
Back
Top