Quarterback Joe Burrow had more than 15 official offers out of high school, making the decision on where he would like to play very difficult. Burrow’s decision wouldn’t come until two years after playing backup at Ohio State in 2014 and 2015. The decision for the QB, much like Chase, was between Louisiana State University and the University of Cincinnati.

After suffering a broken thumb, Burrow took a back seat while Dwayne Haskins led the Ohio State Buckeyes to a huge victory over the rivaling Michigan Wolverines. That put the 4-star recruit in a tough spot.

Burrow wasn’t used to being the understudy as he was the starting varsity QB for three seasons at Athens High School in The Plains, Ohio.

Burrow also emerged from high school as a 4-star recruit in the 2015 class. The right-handed gunslinger was listed as the 13th overall athlete in Ohio with a national ranking of 295, per 247sports.

The 2013 Ohio Gatorade Player of the Year threw for over 11,400 yards in high school while leading his team to the Division III state semi-finals. Burrow was named to first-team all-state and he took the crown as Ohio’s Mr. Football.

Fast forward to 2017 when the grad transfer made the decision to head to Death Valley to rep the purple and gold. There were concerns as he made his way into an offense that ranked 84th in the country in regards to passing yards per game. What was to come was quite simply one of the best college performances of all time, and it happened within two years of starting time.

Burrow started his first full season in 2018 where he would play 13 games. There were signs of flashes from the Ohioan with 219 completions for 2894 yards and 16 touchdowns. The downside was the accuracy with a completion percentage of just 57.8 percent.

That wouldn’t last long for Burrow and LSU once Ja’Marr Chase saw solid playing time in his second season. 2019 was a historical year for the first-round duo.

Burrow let it fly 527 times while completing 402 of those attempts. An 18.5 percent increase in accuracy is what the QB brought to the table in his final college season. On top of that, Burrow threw for 5,671 yards and 60 touchdowns. He fell three touchdowns shy of surpassing Bailey Zappe’s single-season passing touchdown record at 62.

The difference for Burrow was the fact that he led the Tigers to a 15-0 season with a 42-25 National Championship win over No. 2 ranked Clemson. Trevor Lawrence was under center for Clemson, but Burrow’s 463-yard and five-touchdown effort was too much for the orange and purple.

Burrow declared for the 2020 NFL Draft following an amazing senior season that set him up as the top-ranked quarterback on the board.

Cincinnati wasted no time snagging Burrow with the first overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft as he enjoyed the special moment at home with his parents.

The 4-star recruit gained attention from 28 universities in high school, including the University of Cincinnati. Deservingly so as Chase logged 115 career receptions for 2,152 yards and 30 touchdowns. That was enough to earn a recruit score of 98 and a national rank of 15 as a wideout, according to 247sports.

During his senior year, Chase played all 10 games for the Rummel Raiders. Over the course of the season, the fourth-ranked receiver in the state took to the ground 16 times for 102 yards. More importantly, Chase hauled in 61 receptions for 1,011 yards and 13 touchdowns. He averaged 101.1 yards per game in his final high school season.

To add to an already appealing resume, Chase was selected to play in the Under Armour All-American game. He was also selected to attend The Opening Finals, 7 vs. 7 matchups between elite teams composed of the top high school recruits.

Chase earned his first offer from Arkansas State. The receiver would go on to commit until Feb. 4, 2017 – when the University of Kansas sent him an offer. Six days later, the 4-star announced his decommitment to the Jayhawks.

Of course, more offers were on the table, but it was the University of Florida that would get him to commit in July of 2017. The Gators had Chase’s commitment for much longer than Kansas, as the prospect decommitted three months after the initial offer.

Louisiana State University offered Chase in February, three days after he announced he was no longer attending Kansas. He followed up by attending a camp in June. After an official visit on Jan. 12, 2018 – the highly-touted prospect announced his final commitment to the Tigers.

Chase put the pen to paper just one month after his verbal commitment, before enrolling in June.

Once Chase stepped foot on campus in 2018, the future was not as clear as it is today. His freshman campaign was a tad underwhelming, only logging 23 receptions for 313 yards and three touchdowns. That’s not to say that isn’t better than most first-years, but the ceiling was clearly much higher.

However, it didn’t take long for Chase to prove that true with the new quarterback’s arrival. During his final collegiate season as a sophomore Chase logged 14 games played. The numbers started to shine with 84 receptions, 1780 yards and 20 touchdowns.

That was enough to capture the top spot as the NCAA’s single-season leader for receiving yards and receiving touchdowns. He didn’t stop there as he was named to the NCAA All-American team.

Chase also captured his first and only collegiate championship in 2019, ending his college career in fashion before declaring for the 2021 NFL Draft.

In the first round of the 2020 NFL draft, the Cincinnati Bengals selected Chase with the fifth overall pick. Something the Bengals front office would not regret in the slightest.

A possible key factor of Chase’s incredible play during his sophomore campaign could have very well been the change in the quarterback room at LSU.

The Bengals knew the decision had to be Chase with the fifth overall pick. In what may very well be the best move by the Bengals’ front office, they snatched up the top quarterback in the 2020 class and the top wide receiver in the 2021 class – pairing the former Tigers up as full-grown Bengals.

The dynamic duo emerged from the bayou to the Bengals as one of the league’s best one-two punches.

Burrow played a great first season in Cincinnati before it was shortened due to an injury. With Chase making his way onto the roster in ‘21, Burrow was set up for success. The chemistry between the young bucks was nothing short of amazing.

Chase had 16 games with Burrow in his rookie season and he made the most of every opportunity. Chase hauled in 81 receptions for 1,455 yards and 13 touchdowns. Enough to award Chase the Rookie of the Year award.

Burrow completed 366 passes on 520 attempts while logging 4,611 yards and 34 touchdowns. Cincinnati had its second award winner of the year with Burrow being named the league’s Comeback Player of the Year.

The two superstars made an instant impact in Cincinnati as the franchise made its first appearance in a Super Bowl since 1988. Though they didn’t win the club’s first championship, most have to believe one is on the way.

From the Bayou to the Bengals, Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase proved their skills in college and the tandem is well on their way to cementing themselves as NFL legends.