Christian Josiah Olave (/ˈlɑːv/ oh-LAH-vay; born June 27, 2000) is an American professional football wide receiver for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Ohio State Buckeyes, where he holds the school record of most career touchdown receptions at 35. Olave was selected by the Saints in the first round of the 2022 NFL draft.

Chris Olave
refer to caption
Olave with Ohio State in 2018
No. 12 – New Orleans Saints
Position:Wide receiver
Personal information
Born: (2000-06-27) June 27, 2000 (age 24)
San Ysidro, California, U.S.
Height:6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight:187 lb (85 kg)
Career information
High school:Mission Hills
(San Marcos, California)
College:Ohio State (2018–2021)
NFL draft:2022 / round: 1 / pick: 11
Career history
Roster status:Injured Reserve
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of Week 8, 2024
Receptions:190
Receiving yards:2,552
Receiving touchdowns:10
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Early life

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Of Cuban descent on his father's side and African-American on his mother's, Olave was born on June 27, 2000, in San Ysidro, California.[1] He played football at Eastlake High School in Chula Vista for two seasons before transferring to Mission Hills High School in San Marcos, California. He had to sit out his junior year due to California Interscholastic Federation transfer rules.[2] During his senior season, Olave caught 93 passes for 1,764 yards and 26 touchdowns. He was also a member of the school's basketball and track teams.[3] He committed to Ohio State University in January 2018.[4]

College career

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As a freshman at Ohio State, Olave played on both offense and special teams. He recorded 12 catches for 197 yards and three touchdowns during his debut season.[5] During the 2018 match up against Michigan, he was able to bring in two touchdowns and block a punt in the 62–39 Ohio State win.[6][7] The following week in the 2018 Big Ten Football Championship Game, he caught five passes for 79 yards and a touchdown against Northwestern.[8]

In the 2019 season, Olave had three games with two receiving touchdowns.[9] His highest yard total came against Rutgers with four receptions for 139 receiving yards in the 56–21 victory.[10] He finished with 48 receptions for 840 receiving yards and 12 receiving touchdowns.[9]

In the 2020 season, Olave played in seven games due to the COVID-19 pandemic shortening the Buckeyes' season.[11] He scored multiple receiving touchdowns in three games and went over 100 receiving yards in five games.[12]

Olave recorded four games with multiple receiving touchdowns and five going over the 100-yard mark in the 2021 season. Olave finished the 2021 season with 65 receptions for 936 receiving yards and 13 receiving touchdowns.[13] His 13 receiving touchdowns led the Big Ten.[14] Following the season, Olave announced that he would be opting out of the 2022 Rose Bowl in order to prepare for the 2022 NFL draft.[15]

College statistics

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Ohio State Buckeyes
Season GP Receiving
Rec Yds Avg TD
2018 7 12 197 16.4 3
2019 13 48 840 17.5 12
2020 7 50 729 16.2 8
2021 11 65 936 14.4 13
Career 38 176 2,711 15.4 35

Professional career

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Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split Vertical jump Broad jump
6 ft 0+38 in
(1.84 m)
187 lb
(85 kg)
31+18 in
(0.79 m)
9+12 in
(0.24 m)
4.39 s 1.45 s 2.46 s 32.0 in
(0.81 m)
10 ft 4 in
(3.15 m)
Sources:[16][17]

Olave was drafted by the New Orleans Saints in the first round (11th overall) of the 2022 NFL Draft.[18]

Olave made his NFL debut in Week 1 against the Atlanta Falcons with three receptions for 41 yards and a two-point conversion in the 27–26 victory.[19] In Week 3, against the Carolina Panthers, Olave had nine receptions for 147 yards.[20] In Week 4, against the Minnesota Vikings, he had his first professional touchdown reception on a four-yard reception from Andy Dalton.[21] He added two more games going over the 100-yard mark over the 2022 season. He finished his rookie season with 72 receptions for 1,042 receiving yards and four receiving touchdowns.[22] He was named to the 2022 PFWA All-Rookie Team.[23]

On September 10, 2023, Olave caught eight passes for 112 yards against the Tennessee Titans in the 16–15 victory.[24] He caught another 8 passes for 104 yards in week 3 against the Green Bay Packers as the Saints lost 17–18.[25] He finished his sophomore campaign with 87 receptions for 1,123 yards and five touchdowns.[26]

On July 18, 2024, Olave was placed on the Active/Non-football injury or illness (NFI) list.[27] He was activated prior to week 1.[28]

NFL career statistics

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Legend
Bold Career high

Regular season

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Year Team Games Receiving Fumbles
GP GS Rec Yds Avg Lng TD Fum Lost
2022 NO 15 9 72 1,042 14.5 53 4 2 2
2023 NO 16 11 87 1,123 12.9 51 5 0 0
2024 NO 6 6 23 280 12.2 39 1 0 0
Career 32 21 161 2,176 13.5 53 9 2 2

Personal life

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On October 23, 2023, Olave was arrested by the Kenner Police Department in Kenner, Louisiana on suspicion of reckless operation of a motor vehicle, reportedly driving 70 mph in a 35 mph zone.[29]

References

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  1. ^ Mijares, Guillermo (April 28, 2022). "San Ysidro star gets drafted in the first round of the 2022 NFL draft". ChulaVistaToday.com. Archived from the original on October 10, 2022. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  2. ^ Maffei, John (October 17, 2016). "Proposal would ease athletically motivated high school transfers". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Archived from the original on April 29, 2022. Retrieved April 28, 2022.
  3. ^ Loza, Liz (April 18, 2022). "NFL Draft: Is Ohio State's Chris Olave too good for the Dallas Cowboys to ignore?". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved April 28, 2022.
  4. ^ McGlade, Ryan (January 28, 2018). "Chris Olave Commits To Ohio State". Bucknuts. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  5. ^ "Chris Olave 2018 Game Log". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on February 26, 2023. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  6. ^ "Michigan at Ohio State Box Score, November 24, 2018". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on February 26, 2023. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  7. ^ Means, Stephen (November 25, 2018). "Breaking down Chris Olave's blocked punt that propelled Ohio State past Michigan". cleveland.com. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  8. ^ "Northwestern vs Ohio State Box Score, December 1, 2018". Sports Reference. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  9. ^ a b "Chris Olave 2019 Game Log". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on February 26, 2023. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  10. ^ "Ohio State at Rutgers Box Score, November 16, 2019". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on February 26, 2023. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  11. ^ Brassil, Gillian R. (October 23, 2020). "The Big Ten's Rocky Road Back to Football". The New York Times. Archived from the original on February 26, 2023. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  12. ^ "Chris Olave 2020 Game Log". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on February 26, 2023. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  13. ^ "Chris Olave 2021 Game Log". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on February 26, 2023. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  14. ^ "2021 Big Ten Conference Leaders". Sports Reference. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  15. ^ Murphy, Patrick (December 27, 2021). "Ohio State's Nicholas Petit-Frere opts out of Rose Bowl, declares for NFL Draft". Bucknuts. Archived from the original on December 27, 2021. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  16. ^ "Chris Olave Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Archived from the original on March 3, 2022. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  17. ^ "2022 Draft Scout Chris Olave, Ohio State NFL Draft Scout College Football Profile". draftscout.com. Archived from the original on May 9, 2022. Retrieved April 28, 2022.
  18. ^ "New Orleans Saints trade up to select Ohio State receiver Chris Olave with the 11th pick in first round of the 2022 NFL Draft". NewOrleansSaints.com. April 28, 2022. Archived from the original on March 23, 2023. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  19. ^ "New Orleans Saints at Atlanta Falcons – September 11th, 2022". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on October 12, 2022. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  20. ^ "New Orleans Saints at Carolina Panthers – September 25th, 2022". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on October 10, 2022. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  21. ^ "Minnesota Vikings at New Orleans Saints – October 2nd, 2022". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on October 10, 2022. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  22. ^ "Chris Olave 2022 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  23. ^ "2022 NFL All-Rookie Team". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on February 18, 2023. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  24. ^ "Tennessee Titans at New Orleans Saints – September 10th, 2023". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on September 14, 2023. Retrieved September 4, 2024.
  25. ^ "New Orleans Saints at Green Bay Packers – September 24th, 2023". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on May 18, 2024. Retrieved September 4, 2024.
  26. ^ "Chris Olave 2023 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 7, 2024.
  27. ^ "New Orleans Saints right tackle Ryan Ramczyk placed on Reserve/PUP list". NewOrleansSaints.com. Archived from the original on July 19, 2024. Retrieved July 19, 2024.
  28. ^ Ulrich, Logan (July 24, 2024). "Saints Activated DE Chase Young & WR Chris Olave". NFLTradeRumors.co. Retrieved September 19, 2024.
  29. ^ Terrell, Katherine (October 24, 2023). "Saints WR Chris Olave arrested on suspicion of reckless driving". ESPN. Archived from the original on October 24, 2023. Retrieved October 24, 2023.
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