Taurian Washington could have thrown in the towel or transferred to another school after a disappointing 2009 season during which he didn’t record a single catch.

Instead, he has continued to work hard and has been playing wide receiver with the first team offense this spring.

“I went through a lot of adversity,” Washington said. “I kind of thought I was going to play a little bit more, but sometimes you have to wait for your turn, and now is my turn. I’m just basically trying to wait patiently and do everything that I can.”

Washington came to the Buckeyes in 2007 as a four-star recruit. In his first season, Washington scored a touchdown in the season-opening game against Youngstown State. Buckeye fans saw some promise from the freshman out of Orchard Lake, Mich. 
Unfortunately, Washington’s early success was short-lived. He finished off the 2007 season with three receptions for 46 yards and one touchdown.

In 2008, Washington saw sparse playing time and finished the year without a reception. 
In 2009, Washington’s chance to step into the starting lineup for the Buckeyes had come. After a strong spring, he entered the season as the third receiver for the Buckeyes behind Dane Sanzenbacher and DeVier Posey. 

In the season opener against Navy, Washington dropped a couple of passes thrown his way and never rebounded. The remainder of the season, he saw little playing time as freshman Duron Carter and senior Ray Small combined to play the majority of the season at the third wide receiver position.

“I haven’t been consistent, that’s one of the biggest things that I work on every day,” Washington said. “I write that down on my goal sheet every day before practice, just be consistent, focus, be accountable, and do the little things.”

Washington could have followed in the footsteps of former teammate Lamaar Thomas, who transferred to New Mexico because of a lack of playing time. But Washington returned to OSU for his senior season.

Washington said he wanted to come out another year and help the team win. He is quick to defer any personal attention to the success of the team. 

“He keeps battling. I have a lot of respect for him because he comes out and studies the game and works hard,” said wide receiver coach Darrell Hazell. “He has done a nice job the first couple of weeks here, so hopefully he can be that guy that can give us some support.” 

Washington fought off illness early in the spring to remain the starter at third receiver. He has kept his eyes on the prize and focuses daily on the things that he can do to improve the team’s performance. 

“I’ve done some practice on my own and some with DeVier [Posey] and Dane [Sanzenbacher] in the offseason,” Washington said. “After we get done working out, we come in and spend 25 to 30 minutes doing catching drills.”

Sanzenbacher said every year there seems to be a battle for the third receiver position, and the competition makes the players develop much quicker.

“Taurian has always been a guy that has worked hard, that hasn’t been the issue,” Sanzenbacher said. “It’s just putting it together in the moment. He’s put in a lot of hard work and he looks really good. When we run three receivers wide in practice this spring, Taurian has been the third guy.”