Ohio State's Chris Olave, Nicholas Petit-Frere And Haskell Garrett Opt Out Of Rose Bowl

The Buckeyes will be without four starters when they take on the Utes on Jan. 1.

Ohio State head coach Ryan Day told BuckeyesNow and other reporters gathered at Disneyland on Monday afternoon that senior wide receiver Chris Olave, redshirt junior offensive tackle Nicholas Petit-Frere and fifth-year senior defensive tackle Haskell Garrett will not play in the Rose Bowl against Utah.

“Certainly love those guys and appreciate everything they’ve done for the program,” Day said. “The guys have had a good month of practice, and we’re going to move forward with what we have.”

They join junior wide receiver Garrett Wilson, who announced this afternoon he is opting out and entering his name into the 2022 NFL Draft.

A former three-star wide receiver from San Ysidro, Calif., Olave finishes his career as one of the most decorated players at the position in school history. He caught 175 passes for 2,702 yards and a school-record 35 touchdowns, passing former wide receiver David Boston, who had 34 scores from 1996-98.

Olave was a first-team All-Big Ten selection and named a first-team All-American this fall by the American Football Coaches Association and is widely expected to be a first-round pick in April’s NFL Draft.

Petit-Frere – a former five-star prospect from Tampa, Fla. – allowed just 22 quarterback hurries, two sacks and two quarterback hits in 768 snaps this season, his first as a starter. He also helped pave the way for running back TreVeyon Henderson to rush for 1,172 yards and 15 touchdowns this season.

Like Wilson, Petit-Frere was named a first-team All-American by the Football Writers Association. He has two seasons of eligibility remaining but has decided it in his best interest to enter the NFL Draft.

A former four-star prospect from Las Vegas Bishop Gorman, Garrett ends his Ohio State career with 62 tackles, 13.5 tackles for loss, 7.5 sacks and two defensive touchdowns, including a pick-six against Michigan State in 2020 and a 32-yard fumble recovery against Minnesota in the 2021 season opener.

Garrett, who used his extra year of eligibility to play for the Buckeyes this fall, earned first-team All-Big Ten and second-team All-American honors from the Associated Press.

With both Olave and Wilson out, Ohio State will need sophomore Julian Fleming or true freshmen Marvin Harrison Jr. and Emeka Egbuka to step up against the Utes alongside sophomore starter Jaxon Smith-Njigba.

The Buckeyes will likely rotate some players along the offensive line with Petit-Frere opting out, as fifth-year senior left guard Thayer Munford will likely move back out to left tackle. Junior Matthew Jones would slide in at left guard.

Lastly, redshirt junior Taron Vincent and true freshman Tyleik Williams should see increased time at the three-technique defensive tackle position with Garrett not playing.

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