Top 5 wide receivers for the 2024 college football season

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Michael Cohen

College Football and College Basketball Writer

RJ Young

FOX Sports National College Football Analyst

College football has seen some of the most dominant offensive players over the last decade, with several quarterbacks and running backs coming to mind. However, the wide receiver position has been a supremely talented one in more recent years.

From players like Ja’Marr Chase at LSU to Rome Odunze at Washington just this past season, there have been several NFL superstars to emerge after dominating at the collegiate level.

With so many incredible players at the position this year, FOX Sports college football experts Michael Cohen and RJ Young each ranked their top five wide receivers ahead of the 2024 season.

Let’s take a look:

RJ:

1. Emeka Egbuka, Ohio State

He is the most experienced pass-catcher in the best wide receiver room in the country. Prior to Hunter’s arrival in the sport, he was the best all-purpose player in the nation, and he’s chasing history. Egbuka needs just 78 catches to break K.J. Hill’s record for the most catches by a Buckeye (201), and he needs 1,041 receiving yards to break Michael Jenkins’ 21-year-old school record (2,898).

2. Luther Burden III, Missouri

Burden enjoyed a breakout 2023 season on a Missouri team that beat Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl. He accounted for 86 catches for 1,212 yards and nine touchdowns. At 5-11, 208 pounds, he doesn’t have elite size.

3. Tetairoa McMillan, Arizona

His 90 catches for 1,402 yards with 10 touchdowns made him one of the breakout stars of 2023 and earned him an All-American designation. His 11 catches for 266 yards with two scores against the Sun Devils is one of the greatest performances by a wideout of the last three years.

4. Elic Ayomanor, Stanford

Ayomanor went for 294 receiving yards on 13 catches with three scores against Colorado, nearly a third of his 1,093 yards and nearly a fifth of his 62 catches in 2024. He did that against a secondary that featured Hunter defending him 1-on-1.

5. Travis Hunter, Colorado

Hunter is here because he has the talent and has shown the ability to become one of the five best wideouts in the sport, and I refuse not to acknowledge his prodigious talent going both ways. Yes, the production is above average for most — 57 catches, 721 yards — but factoring in that he’s liable to average 100 or more snaps per game for a consecutive year makes this decision easier.

Michael:

1. Tetairoa McMillan, Arizona

When Nick Saban retired and the repercussive dominoes began to fall, the futures of McMillan and star quarterback Noah Fifita were uncertain after Arizona head coach Jedd Fisch left for Washington. Keeping both players on campus was a huge win for incoming coach Brent Brennan, who can build his offense around arguably the most productive quarterback-wide receiver tandem in the country. McMillan caught 90 passes for 1,402 yards and 10 touchdowns last season to earn third-team All-America honors.

2. Luther Burden III, Missouri

A second-team All-American last season, Burden racked up most of his production before Halloween. He topped 100 yards in five straight games from Sept. 9 through Oct. 7, including a stretch of three consecutive games with at least 10 receptions, as the Tigers developed into one of the surprise teams of the 2023 campaign. Burden finished with 86 receptions for 1,212 yards and nine touchdowns. He ranked eighth among players from the Power 5 conferences in receiving yards per game (93.2).

3. Emeka Egbuka, Ohio State

Now that Marvin Harrison Jr. has moved on to the NFL, it’s Egbuka’s chance to be the No. 1 receiver at Ohio State. The versatile wideout caught 74 passes for 1,151 yards and 10 touchdowns two seasons ago but never found his rhythm in 2023, a campaign derailed by nagging injuries. The hope in Columbus is that improved quarterback play from starter Will Howard and fresh ideas from new offensive coordinator Chip Kelly can help Egbuka enjoy a terrific senior year.

4. Tez Johnson, Oregon

Expectations for Johnson are soaring after he put together one of the best statistical campaigns in program history last fall. His 86 receptions set a new school record; his 1,182 receiving yards were third-most in single-season history at Oregon; his 10 receiving touchdowns were tied for fourth in single-season history for the Ducks. High-profile Texas A&M transfer Evan Stewart, another wideout, should divide the attention of opposing defenses in 2024, which could open even more room for Johnson as Oregon enters the Big Ten.

5. Kevin Concepcion, NC State

A former three-star prospect in the 2023 recruiting cycle, Concepcion quickly developed into one of the best wideouts in the country last fall. The 5-foot-11, 187-pound freshman caught 71 passes for 839 yards and 10 scores to earn ACC Rookie of the Year and first-team Freshman All-America honors. His reception and touchdown totals led all FBS freshmen. The Wolfpack added accomplished passer Grayson McCall, formerly of Coastal Carolina, via the transfer portal. Concepcion should be his top target.

RJ Young is a national college football writer and analyst for FOX Sports and the host of the podcast “The Number One College Football Show.” Follow him at @RJ_Young and subscribe to “The RJ Young Show” on YouTube.

Michael Cohen covers college football and basketball for FOX Sports with an emphasis on the Big Ten. Follow him at @Michael_Cohen13.

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