Garrett Wilson is projected to be one of the first wide receivers to come off the board during the first round of Thursday’s NFL Draft. The versatile pass catcher out of Ohio State’s highlights feature him being open so frequently that you feel bad for opposing cornerbacks — Wilson finished his junior year with 70 catches, 1,058 yards receiving, and 12 touchdowns. The numbers are gaudy and the tape is fascinating, but what separates Wilson is his approach both on and off the field.
“Your mentality is your mentality and you carry that with you no matter what you do,” Garrett Wilson tells UPROXX.
When he’s not being a quarterback’s best friend on the gridiron, one thing that Wilson really enjoys is playing Call of Duty. The game is definitely a favorite among professional athletes, but not everyone can sit down and play against professionals, which Wilson got to do earlier this year.
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— Los Angeles Guerrillas (@LAGuerrillas) February 10, 2022
Wilson met plenty of current NFL pros during the pre-draft process, as well as a handful of professional Call of Duty players. While the experiences were different, it was clear to him that he was talking to the best at what they do in both camps.
“That was really cool being up in L.A., it was really cool. You get to see how good a pro actually is at Call of Duty.” Wilson says. “Whenever I met a pro gamer, they wanted to talk about the game. Whenever I met a football player, we rarely ever talked about football. But they’re both at the top of their sport, so it’s really interesting getting to talk to both.”
Of course, Wilson is going pro in football, while gaming is more of an opportunity to relax and interact with former teammates and long-time friends. There’s also a sense of familiarity with the game, as Wilson has played it ever since he was a kid.
“The first time I ever played Call of Duty was probably Modern Warfare 2,” Wilson said. “But when I really started taking it seriously was Black Ops 2, so around sixth or seventh grade.”
With so much time under his belt, Wilson held his own in what sounded like a pretty stacked locker room of Call of Duty players at Ohio State — he said he was in the top-3 among his teammates in Columbus, and perhaps he could have become a pro gamer if he set his mind to it. That isn’t the dream that Wilson wanted to chase, though, and as a result, we’re going to hear his name called as he enters the NFL on Thursday night.