The college football season is approaching. There is always debate over ranking the best players in the sport. Here are the top 25 college football wide receivers heading into the 2023 season.
Note: While projection of what a player can be is taken into account, most rankings are from what has been seen on the field so far. These are not NFL Draft rankings, but rather focus on the best players in college football.
Top College Football Wide Receivers
25-21
25. Joshua Cephus, UTSA Roadrunners
Although some have left the program, UTSA still has some talented receivers including Cephas. In 2022, he had 87 receptions for 985 yards and six touchdowns. He’ll have a chance to be the top target for the Roadrunners as they join the AAC.
24. Tory Horton, Colorado State Rams
Horton started his career off at Nevada then transferred to Colorado State, following his head coach Jay Norvell. He has improved every season he has been in college and really stood out in 2022. Horton had 71 catches for 1,131 yards and eight touchdowns.
23. Jeremiah Hunter, Cal Golden Bears
Cal hasn’t had the best team success, but they do have some promising young skill-position players. After a decent season in 2021, Hunter really impressed in 2022. He had 60 catches for 963 yards and five touchdowns.
22. Brennan Presley, Oklahoma State Cowboys
Presley has been another receiver that has increased his production every season he has been in college. Even though the passing attack isn’t what it once was for the Cowboys, he had 67 receptions for 813 yards and two touchdowns in 2022. If quarterback play improves, he can really improve on these numbers.
21. Jalon Calhoun, Duke Blue Devils
Duke was much improved in Mike Elko’s first season and Calhoun made that improvement easier. He tallied 62 receptions for 873 yards and four touchdowns in 2022. In year two under Elko, Calhoun can help Duke have even more success.
20-16
20. Tetairoa McMillan, Arizona Wildcats
Arizona has a few talented receivers and McMillan had a good freshman season for the Wildcats in 2022. He had 39 catches for 702 yards and eight touchdowns. Building on that will help him move up this list for next season.
19. Ali Jennings, Virginia Tech Hokies
Jennings was on an Old Dominion team that played Virginia Tech, but now is on the Hokies’ side. He also spent time with West Virginia before Old Dominion. In his career, he has 142 receptions for 2,265 yards and 16 touchdowns.
18. Jamari Thrash, Louisville Cardinals
Thrash consistently improved during his time at Georgia State. Last season, he totaled 104 receptions for 1,752 yards and 12 touchdowns. Now that he is at Louisville, he will help Jeff Brohm’s offense a lot in year one.
17. Ladd McConkey, Georgia Bulldogs
Other talented receivers have come and gone, but McConkey has stayed with Georgia and helped them win back-to-back national championships. His great route-running helped him notch 58 receptions for 762 yards and seven touchdowns last season. He will have to help break in a new quarterback this season.
16. Evan Stewart, Texas A&M Aggies
Despite Texas A&M’s offense struggling in 2022, Stewart showed off his talent as a freshman. He had 53 receptions for 649 yards and two touchdowns, which given the competition level and inconsistencies of the offense is a great start to a career.
15-11
15. Dominic Lovett, Georgia Bulldogs
After proving himself at Missouri for two seasons, Lovett is joining Georgia this season. He had 56 receptions for 846 yards and three touchdowns last season. With a new quarterback and offensive coordinator at Georgia this season, Lovett’s play will be very important.
14. Malachi Corley, Western Kentucky Hilltoppers
Western Kentucky airs the ball out a lot and Corley is a huge beneficiary. He totaled 101 receptions for 1,295 yards and 11 touchdowns in 2022. It doesn’t look like his production is going anywhere with quarterback Austin Reed back on campus.
13. Jalen McMillan, Washington Huskies
Washington has one of the more impressive receiving rooms in the country. McMillan helps the cause, as he had 79 receptions for 1,098 yards and nine touchdowns in 2022. With Michael Penix back for Washington, the passing attack should be elite once again.
12. Will Sheppard, Vanderbilt Commodores
Vanderbilt will likely finish at the bottom of the SEC again, but Sheppard is a player to watch. He had 60 catches for 776 yards and nine touchdowns last season. Teams will focus on Sheppard this year and if he still produces, it will be impressive.
11. Troy Franklin, Oregon Ducks
Bo Nix had a resurgence at Oregon last season and Franklin benefitted from it. He had 61 receptions for 891 yards and nine touchdowns in 2022. Franklin being good opens up the whole offense for Oregon.
10-6
10. Jacob Cowing, Arizona Wildcats
After spending three seasons being productive at UTEP, Cowing transferred to Arizona last year. He proved that the rise in competition level wasn’t a problem for him, as he had 85 catches for 1,034 yards and seven touchdowns.
9. Dorian Singer, USC Trojans
Singer lined up for Arizona last season, but now will be with USC. He had 66 receptions for 1,105 yards and six touchdowns for the Wildcats. Now he gets a chance to be Caleb Williams’s top receiver.
8. Zakhari Franklin, Ole Miss Rebels
He had back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons for UTSA, which helped them be one of the best group of five conference teams in the country over that span. Now Franklin is at Ole Miss where his talents will be tested in the SEC.
7. Johnny Wilson, Florida State Seminoles
Wilson is one of the bigger receivers in recent memory at 6-foot-7 and he knows how to use his size to his advantage. In 2022, he hauled in 43 passes for 897 yards and five touchdowns. Florida State will use Wilson as a mismatch often in 2023.
6. Juice Wells, South Carolina Gamecocks
In his first year at South Carolina, Wells had 68 receptions for 928 yards and six touchdowns. Before last season, he played at the FCS level where he starred. If Spencer Rattler can be more consistent, Wells could produce even better.
5-1
5. Malik Nabers, LSU Tigers
He had a rough start to last season, but Nabers turned things around quickly to be LSU’s most productive receiver. He finished with 72 receptions for 1,017 yards and three touchdowns. With a great year under his belt, Nabers can take a step forward this season.
4. Xavier Worthy, Texas Longhorns
Worthy has had two productive years at Texas, despite inconsistencies and injuries at the quarterback position. He has 122 receptions for 1,741 yards and 21 touchdowns over the last two seasons. If Quinn Ewers can improve this year, Worthy’s production can go through the roof.
3. Rome Odunze, Washington Huskies
Odunze is a highlight-reel on the field, but has the production to match. He had 75 catches for 1,145 yards and seven touchdowns. The Huskies will be throwing it all over the field this season as they try to compete in the PAC-12.
2. Emeka Egbuka, Ohio State Buckeyes
Ohio State has the best receiver room in the country. Egbuka may be Ohio State’s no. 2 receiver, but he puts up number too. He had 74 receptions for 1,151 yards and 10 touchdowns.
1. Marvin Harrison Jr., Ohio State Buckeyes
The best receiver in college football is Marvin Harrison Jr. He has the size, speed and athleticism that already has drawn extreme NFL interest. He had 77 catches for 1,263 yards and 14 touchdowns in 2022, as he helped Ohio State make the College Football Playoff. With his former high school quarterback taking over at Ohio State, Harrison Jr. will have chemistry with him and could make the growing pains go away quickly.
Notable Wide Receivers Outside of the Top 25
Lawrence Arnold, Kansas Jayhawks
Arnold had over 700 receiving yards for Kansas last season and made some big plays on their way to bowl eligibility.
Monaray Baldwin, Baylor Bears
Baldwin looks to take a leap after totaling 565 receiving yards last season.
Jerand Bradley, Texas Tech Red Raiders
Texas Tech changed quarterbacks a few times last season, but Bradley still had 744 receiving yards.
Phillip Brooks, Kansas State Wildcats
Brooks has two straight seasons of over 500 receiving yards, but now is the lead guy.
Barion Brown, Kentucky Wildcats
The offense wasn’t great for Kentucky in 2023, but Brown was a game-changer with 628 receiving yards.
Jermaine Burton, Alabama Crimson Tide
He left Georgia after one championship and went to Alabama where his production increased, but not enough to make the top 25.
Chimere Dike, Wisconsin Badgers
Dike has improved every season at Wisconsin and now can help Luke Fickell in his first season. He had 689 receiving yards in 2022.
Cornelius Johnson, Michigan Wolverines
After a good 2021 season, Johnson’s production dipped a little in 2022, so he’ll want to get things back on track.
Dane Key, Kentucky Wildcats
Key is the second half of the good Kentucky sophomore-duo and had 519 yards in 2022.
Sam Pinckney, Coastal Carolina
Pinckney and Grayson McCall return to hopefully keep the offense running well after Jamey Chadwell’s departure.
Ainias Smith, Texas A&M Aggies
In 2022, Smith was only able to play in four games, so he’ll need to prove he’s healthy and ready to go in 2023.
RaRa Thomas, Georgia Bulldogs
Following a season where he had 626 receiving yards at Mississippi State, Thomas decided to join the reigning national champions.
DeVaughn Vele, Utah Utes
Last season, Vele had 695 yards and five touchdowns. His improving could help Utah make a third-straight Rose Bowl.
Devontez Walker, North Carolina Tar Heels
Walker had 921 yards for Kent State last year and now gets his chance in a bigger conference with UNC.
Antonio Williams, Clemson Tigers
His 604 yards last season were impressive given how the offense was not operating like it usually does.
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