Joel Klatt
Lead College Football Analyst
The college football offseason is not only a great time to look ahead, but it’s also a great time to do some reflection. In the latest episode of my podcast, I did a little reflection thanks to a mailbag question. A fan named Roy L. asked me which player had the best performance in a game that I’ve called.
Honestly, that’s such a difficult question to answer. I can’t pick just one because there have been so many incredible performances. So, I’m going to share my top five individual performances I’ve ever called instead. Throughout this week, I’ll go one by one through my top five, in descending order.
Before we get going, let me drop a couple of honorable mentions first. Kyler Murray in the 2018 Red River Showdown was phenomenal. Texas won that game, but the former Oklahoma quarterback had a run down the sideline in that game that’s still probably the singular best play I’ve ever seen.
The other honorable mention I had was Ohio State quarterback JT Barrett’s comeback performance against Penn State in 2017. If you remember, Saquon Barkley took the opening kickoff for a touchdown, but Barrett was incredible in that game. I just couldn’t find a spot for him on that list.
However, a pair of other Buckeyes cracked the list at No. 5.
I’m going with a pair of performances from the same game to start this list because both players were absolutely incredible.
The stat lines tell you a lot about what was going on. Marvin Harrison Jr. had 10 catches for 185 yards going against a Penn State secondary that included cornerback Joey Porter Jr. Some context on that: Going into that game, the general thought was that both players would eventually be first-round picks (Porter ended up being the first pick of the second round). So, some thought it’d be a difficult matchup for Harrison, even though there was a belief that he was the best receiver in the nation at the time.
It turned out not to be too difficult of a matchup for Harrison. As some of us would’ve been impressed if he just posted seven receptions for 80 yards that day, arguably the most impressive part of his performance was that all 10 of his catches went for first downs. It was remarkable sitting in the booth and watching him go to work. Penn State was trying to hold him and body him up, but to no avail.
Four of Harrison’s catches in that game were on third or fourth downs. It felt like there were times when he was putting Ohio State’s offense on his back and he was moving the chains.
Marvin Harrison Jr. had 10 catches that all went for first downs in Ohio State’s victory over Penn State in 2022. (Photo by Randy Litzinger/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
On the other side of the ball for the Buckeyes, it felt like JT Tuimoloau went full Thor on Penn State. He was incredible. I’ve never seen a defensive player wreck a game to the extent he did.
Tuimoloau had two interceptions, with one of those picks going the other way to seal the game, to go with two sacks. One of those sacks was a strip-sack that he recovered and he forced a fourth turnover when he tipped a pass thrown by Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford that resulted in an interception.
JT Tuimoloau helped Ohio State force four turnovers in its win over Penn State in 2022, including a strip sack of quarterback Sean Clifford. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)
Tuimoloau was basically a threat to score on every offensive play for Penn State. I’ve never felt that way before about a defensive end. There were moments in that game where I stared at him and wondered what he would do next.
Ohio State, who was undefeated and ranked No. 2 in the nation at the time, went on to defeat Penn State, 44-31. The then-13th-ranked Nittany Lions were seemingly knocked out of College Football Playoff contention at the time, while the win helped the Buckeyes reach the CFP that year.
Joel Klatt is FOX Sports’ lead college football game analyst and the host of the podcast “The Joel Klatt Show.” Follow him at @joelklatt and subscribe to the “Joel Klatt Show” on YouTube.
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