The former Ohio State wide receiver signed his rookie contract with the Cardinals on Thursday.

Maserati secured.

— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) May 23, 2024

As the No. 4 overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft, Harrison’s first NFL contract is worth $35.37 million over the next four years, with the Cardinals holding a fifth-year option for 2028. The deal includes a $22.5 million signing bonus and is fully guaranteed, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

“It’s my first job,” Harrison told the Arizona Cardinals’ official website after signing his contract. “Ever since I got here I’ve been telling people I’m going to work – it’s not practice anymore.”

Signed, sealed and Delivered @MarvHarrisonJr https://t.co/SaO5gxeOiy

— Ohio State Football (@OhioStateFB) May 23, 2024

Harrison is the first of this year’s top five picks to sign his NFL rookie contract. He’s the third of Ohio State’s four 2024 NFL draft picks to sign their contracts, joining Houston Texans fourth-round pick Cade Stover (four years, $4.76 million) and Las Vegas Raiders fifth-round pick Tommy Eichenberg (four years, $4.36 million).

Cleveland Browns second-round pick Mike Hall Jr. has not signed his contract yet, but his deal is projected to be worth $7.07 million over the next four years, per the league’s draft pick wage scale.

Harrison signed his contract with the Cardinals even though he has yet to sign the NFLPA’s licensing agreement, which prevents fans from buying his jersey and could keep him out of the Madden NFL 25 video game if he does not sign the agreement. His decision not to sign the licensing agreement before the draft, as NFL prospects typically do, comes amid a dispute with Fanatics, which filed a lawsuit against Harrison on Saturday alleging breach of contract. Fanatics is accusing Harrison of failing to fulfill the obligations of a contract he signed with Fanatics while he was still at Ohio State in 2023, while Harrison’s team has said there is no contract between the former Buckeye star and the sports memorabilia company.

The highest-drafted wide receiver in Ohio State history, Harrison joins former OSU left tackle Paris Johnson Jr. as one of the young stars of the Cardinals, who drafted Johnson with the No. 6 overall pick in 2023.

Expectations are high for Ohio State heading into the 2024 season. But according to ESPN’s latest preseason projections, the Buckeyes are still sitting behind one SEC foe.

Per ESPN’s Bill Connelly’s SP+ projection model, which puts a number to the returning production, recent recruiting and recent history that turns into “a tempo- and opponent adjusted measure of college football efficiency,” Ohio State is the second-best team in the country behind Georgia.

The Buckeyes are listed as the team to beat in the Big Ten ahead of teams such as Oregon (No. 3), Michigan (No. 6) and Penn State (No. 7).

Ohio State is also returning 65% of its production from last season, including 62% of its offense and 68% of its defense.

Ohio State football transfer tracker: Ohio State football winter transfer tracker 2024: Latest portal news, updates

Ohio State listed as top 2024 college football defense

While Ohio State is sitting behind the Bulldogs heading into 2024, the Buckeyes are at the top in expected production on defense.

With players like defensive end J.T. Tuimoloau and cornerback Denzel Burke returning, and the addition of a player like safety Caleb Downs, Ohio State is expected to have the No. 1 defense in the country.

According to the latest SP+ rankings, each of 2024’s top four defenses will be in the Big Ten: Ohio State (No. 1), Iowa (No. 2), Michigan (No. 3) and Penn State (No. 4).

Despite returners like running back TreVeyon Henderson and wide receiver Emeka Egbuka, and additions like running back Quinshon Judkins and quarterback Will Howard, Ohio State’s offensive ranking is 20th best in the country behind programs such as Oregon (No. 1), Georgia (No. 2), Arizona (No. 12) and Miami (No. 18).

Ohio State football schedule 2024

• Aug. 31: Ohio State vs. Akron; Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio
• Sept. 7: Ohio State vs. Western Michigan; Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio
• Sept. 21: Ohio State vs. Marshall; Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio
• Sept. 28: Ohio State at Michigan State; Spartan Stadium, East Lansing, Michigan
• Oct. 5: Ohio State vs. Iowa; Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio
• Oct. 12: Ohio State at Oregon; Autzen Stadium, Eugene, Oregon
• Oct. 26: Ohio State vs. Nebraska; Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio
• Nov. 2: Ohio State at Penn State; Beaver Stadium, University Park, Pennsylvania
• Nov. 9: Ohio State vs. Purdue; Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio
• Nov. 16: Ohio State at Northwestern; Wrigley Field, Chicago, Illinois
• Nov. 23: Ohio State vs. Indiana; Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio
• Nov. 30: Ohio State vs. Michigan; Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio

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The Ohio Lottery has started notifying residents who may have had their personal information leaked after a Christmas Eve security breach

The Ohio Lottery has started notifying residents who may have had their personal information leaked after a Christmas Eve security breach.

An unauthorized actor accessed the lottery’s internal office network on Dec. 24, 2023 and customer and retailer information was potentially exposed, according to a news release.

The lottery finished its investigation into the attack in April and found that data including full names and Social Security numbers had been leaked.

The organization offered people affected one year of credit monitoring and identity theft protection services through IDX, a digital security company, according to a letter sent to an affected Ohio resident.

The USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau reached out to the Ohio Lottery to ask about the number of people affected and how the breach happened but did not receive an immediate response.

The Ohio Lottery has urged people affected by the breach to call the response line at 1-888-658-9188.

Erin Glynn is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.