High School
Former TXHSFB Stars: Garrett Wilson and Jaxon Smith-Njigba
The #12 Oregon Ducks travelled 2400 miles to take on the #3 Ohio State Buckeyes at The ‘Shoe on Saturday. Both teams combined for over 1100 yards of offense, but the Ducks held on for a 35-28 upset win.
Both Ohio State receivers, Garrett Wilson and Jaxon Smith-Njigba, are former Texas high school standouts.
Garrett Wilson (Lake Travis Cavaliers 2016-2018)
He was a 5-star prospect at Lake Travis High School. Wilson was hurt for part of his senior year but still managed to catch 70 passes for 1151 yards and 19 touchdowns.
Wilson’s breakout year was in 2017 when he caught 98 balls for 1774 yards and scored 32 total touchdowns. That season, he was named Central Texas High School Athlete of the Year.
For his prep career, Wilson caught 204 passes for 3359 yards and scored 55 total touchdowns.
Garrett Wilson at Ohio State
As a true freshman in 2019, Wilson played in all 14 games. He caught 30 passes for 432 yards and 5 touchdowns.
In 2020, Wilson earned All-Big Ten honors after catching 43 passes for 723 yards and six TDs, posting four 100-yard receiving games.
He had career highs against #9 Indiana (7 catches, 169 TDs, 2 TDs) and against Penn State (11 catches, 111 yards, including a 62-yard run).
Wilson, a 2021 preseason All-American selection by the Sporting News, caught 8 balls for 117 yards and a touchdown in the loss to the Ducks. He had five catches for 80 yards and a touchdown in Week 1 vs Minnesota.
Jaxon Smith Njigba (Rockwall Yellowjackets 2017-2019)
He was a 5-star prospect at Rockwall and a 2-time 6A All-State selection. In his senior season of 2019, Smith-Njigba was named 6A Offensive Player of the Year and 1st Team 6A All-State. He caught 108 passes for 2161 yards and 35 touchdowns. Some of his performances:
- 2 games over 300-yards receiving.
- 3 games over 200-yards receiving.
- Four games with four receiving TDs.
- One game with 5 receiving TDs.
For his prep career, Smith-Njigma caught 296 balls for over 5300 yards and 63 receiving touchdowns.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba at Ohio State
Smith-Njigba caught seven passes for 145 yards and two touchdowns in the loss to the Ducks.
As a true freshman last year, Smith-Njigba played in seven games and caught 10 passes for 49 yards and a touchdown (against Nebraska).