Wondering what could have been for this former Ohio State football player

The Ohio State football team played against a former friend last week when they took on Penn State. Lost in the Buckeyes' big win over the Nittany Lions was the fact that Julian Fleming played against his former team for the first time. Fleming transferred from the Ohio State Buckeyes in the offseason.

It has been a struggle this season for Fleming. He hasn't had the kind of production that he was hoping for after he transferred closer to home. Against his former team, he had just one catch for four yards. On the season, he has 11 catches for 152 yards and no touchdowns.

Fleming left the Ohio State football program after four seasons that didn't live up to the expectations that were set on him. Fleming was the former number-one overall recruit by some services in the 2020 class. He was the consensus top receiver. Bad luck has left us wondering what could have been.

Julian Fleming's snakebitten Ohio State football career

Since his college football career started back in 2020, Fleming has yet to play an entire season. Injuries have absolutely robbed him of the chance to live up to his potential. He's had a myriad of them throughout the years to both is upper body and his lower body.

Fleming has had knee injuries, ankle issues, and shoulder problems. It just seems that whenever he is finally about to put up some solid stats, another injury crops up. Eventually, he got passed up on the depth chart by some mega-talented receivers. He was hoping Penn State would be a good final destination for him.

Instead, it has largely been the same story for him in terms of production. He's been an afterthought in an offense that isn't super-explosive. On the bright side, he's been able to play in all of Penn State's games so far. That's a win in his own right.

It's a shame we never got to see Fleming's potential. He was always someone I was rooting for.