The Broward County Bravehearts series continues with a wideout from Ohio State who is due for a big season. Binjimen Victor played at Coconut Creek High School and left as an All-American. The unique thing is that Victor also had two other high school teammates in the game as well. Trayvon Mullen and Malek Young both went on to play at Clemson and Miami, respectively. Although Young would suffer a career ending neck injury, Mullen was drafted 40th overall in the draft.
Broward County Bravehearts: Binjimen Victor
Victor could potentially have the same fate if he can string together a big season in his final year at Ohio State. As a 6-4, 195 pounder his size makes him an easy target in the red zone. In fact, 25% of Victor’s career catches have been touchdowns. With Ryan Day taking over for Urban Meyer, Ohio State’s passing attack should evolve.
Creek Boy To Buckeye
The trio of Mullen, Victor, and Young all helped bring national attention to the Coconut Creek football program. At the conclusion of his senior season, Victor decided to commit to Ohio State. The Buckeyes had pursued him for two seasons and watched him count up 27 receiving touchdowns in that period.
With his potential, Victor gained the comparison to AJ Green coming out of high school. He possesses a seven foot wing span and is uber athletic. Normally you wouldn’t see someone of Victor’s stature at kick return but he returned a kickoff for a touchdown. Ohio State was aware of the player they were getting but knew that there would also be a process of refinement.
Growing Pains
Victor arrived weighing 180 pounds as a freshman and was lost in the shuffle behind more veteran receivers. While they played on gameday, Victor continued to make strides in practice. In November of that year, against Maryland, Victor would score his first collegiate touchdown. When Ohio State made the playoffs, the coaches thought enough of him to play him against the Clemson Tigers. Although they lost the game, his progress was evident.
Going into spring football, more improvements came both on the field and inside the weight room. Victor bulked up to 195 pounds and his understanding of the offense was much better than we he arrived. Meyer even compared him to Cris Carter and Michael Thomas. It became more clear that his role would increase.
Breakout Year
Ohio State’s receiver position never lacks talent, so Victor finishing sixth on the team in receptions wasn’t much a surprise. However in his role, he did make the most out of it and was second on the team in receiving touchdowns. Victor had seven of them in his first extensive role as a contributor. Much of the success was downfield throws and in the red zone where he used his size to catch over defenders. On only 23 catches, Victor was able to convert that into seven touchdowns and cemented his role in a talented receiving core.
As a junior, Victor saw the offense change a bit with Ryan Day being promoted as the offensive coordinator. Other players saw their role increase but Victor continued to have big moments. Against Indiana he made a diving catch for a touchdown, and still managed to get his feet in for the score.
Dwayne delivers the dagger for @OhioStateFB.
And @dh_simba7's first career 6 TD performance was sealed by this incredible catch by @BinjimenVictor. 😱 pic.twitter.com/mr4Ye959uo
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) October 6, 2018
Happy Valley Comeback
The best play from Victor might’ve saved Ohio State’s season. The Buckeyes were down 12 points in the fourth quarter with less than seven minutes remaining. Victor was able to catch a pass across the middle, while reaching behind him. He could’ve gone down as he completed the first down but he continued and broke another tackle. Afterward it looked like he could run out of bounds but he cut back inside and outran Penn State with his stride for a score.
No. 1: Binjimen Victor makes the tough catch over the middle and cuts through Penn State defenders all the way to the end zone to make it a one score game. Play of the year. https://t.co/APUS7chdWB
— Barstool Ohio State (@BarstoolOSU) December 31, 2018
That play allowed Ohio State to come back and win on the road in a tough environment and remain undefeated in the Big Ten.
Big Senior Year Ahead
Victor will be counted in his senior season as not only a leader but for consistency. He has flashed every season but this year has to be his best. He is eight touchdowns away from joining a group of only six players in Ohio State history with 20 or more receiving touchdowns in a career. Along with the fact that Ohio State will have a new quarterback, Victor will be counted on to win his match-ups consistently.
If he does play up to his potential, there is definitely teams that will be waiting to draft Victor in the next NFL Draft.
