Friday, August 6, 2021

2021 Season Countdown: #31 Roman Wilson

 

Roman Wilson (image via MLive)

Name: Roman Wilson
Height:
6'0"
Weight:
180 lbs.
High school:
Honolulu (HI) St. Louis
Position:
Wide receiver
Class:
Sophomore
Jersey number:
#14
Last year:
I ranked Wilson #56 and said he would be a backup wide receiver (LINK). He caugh 9 passes for 122 yards and 1 touchdown.
TTB Rating:
78

Wilson's role in 2020 seemed up in the air going into the year, but he established himself as a reliable target with 9 catches in just six games. The freshman speedster made a nice diving catch against Indiana for a touchdown, which was the highlight of his year, but the coaching staff also gave him a handoff on an end around. Only four other true freshmen have averaged 1.5 catches or more per game since 2009 (Roy Roundtree, Jake Butt, Donovan Peoples-Jones, Tarik Black), and Wilson reached 1.5 in 2020.

That bodes well for Wilson, even though he does not appear to be in line to start in 2021. The expectation is that he will be a rotation guy unless injuries happen. It's good to have a guy like Wilson coming off the bench, a guy who can stretch the field with his speed and who has reliable hands. This probably won't be a breakout year for him, but I expect to see continued growth, especially if the quarterback play can be more consistent.

Prediction: Backup wide receiver

9 comments:

  1. He's my favorite receiver on the team, even though Cornelius Johnson is going to be more exciting.

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    Replies
    1. +1

      Roman Wilson is my breakout player on O ... If they can't figure out a way to F with defenses with this kind of speed, we're probably a .5oo team

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    2. Wilson might be our most dangerous wr. Wouldn't surprise if he led the team in td receptions.

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    3. Yup. But you know us, getting that "extra blocker" or a 4th-5th TE is the way to go

      With the speed we have at WR, we should be able to rack up points against anyone, including ohio ... that doesn't mean we win all those games, but struggling to score against Mel Tucker's first team, and failing to get 3 TDs against Wisc/PennSt should NOT happen again

      It's an offensive game in 2021; let's make speed in space a thing

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    4. Lead the team in receptions? Maybe. At least it seems he should be a priority. Sherrone Moore and Matt Weiss are now involved with the offense. Maybe things will be making more sense than the last 4 years.

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    5. @je93
      "with this kind of speed"

      AJ Henning, Mike Sainristil, and Blake Corum are very fast too. I think the offense of the past four years haven't been for the task. I hope I see much more imagination this year. If there is, I'm expecting possibly 10 wins, maybe even 11 if they can pull it off in Madison.

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  2. I don't dislike our presumed starters (Bell, Johnson, Sainristil) but I have to admit I'm a little more excited about the 2nd string's potential (Wilson, Baldwin, Henning)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Shiny new things and recruiting rankings? Sure, maybe. But Wilson has elite speed, Henning looked really good with the ball in his hands, and Baldwin was supposedly getting recruited by OSU and has made a strong first impression. These guys could make leaps, literal and figural.

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    2. August heat. Multiple posts. Is it just excitement for the football season starting to hit or a meltdown. Hard to say...

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