Wilburn grew up just about 15 minutes up the road in Nelsonville, Ohio, where he played wide receiver for Nelsonville York. Wilburn had a successful career for the Buckeyes that included a trip to the state final four in 2017.
During a game his sophomore year, Wilburn and the Buckeyes made the short trip down to Athens, where they’d face off against Athens High School in a yearly Tri-Valley Conference rivalry. Little did Wilburn know, Tim Albin, Ohio’s Offensive Coordinator at the time, was there watching him play.
“It was after my Sophomore year, we played Athens at Athens and I got a phone call from a 740 number and it was Coach Albin,” Wilburn said. “I was thinking about not playing basketball my junior year because I was like you know what, I should focus on football and track. So he called me and was like, you know, ‘Hey, this is coach Albin at Ohio University, I heard through the grapevine that you’re thinking about not playing basketball this year,’ and I was like, ‘What? How does he know that?’ He told me at Ohio, they liked athletes who play a bunch of different sports.”
Wilburn didn’t always want to play at Ohio and he didn’t necessarily always want to play football either. The receiver's first love was basketball, which he wanted to play at the University of Oregon because he loved the school color schemes and look on the field.
What Wilburn did know was that he loved the community that he was a part of and staying in Southeastern Ohio wouldn’t be too bad of a second option.
“It was easy for me to stay,” Wilburn said. “I mean, I just met with my mom and my grandma for breakfast and I think those are the things that I take for granted because I am so close, a lot of other kids don’t get to go do that.”
Family has always been important to Wilburn, which was one of the main factors in his decision to come to Ohio. But Wilburn didn’t expect to be part of an even bigger family on the football team.
“I’m fortunate enough, my mom and my dad are able to make all the games whether they’re home or away and I’m fortunate that they don't have to pay for school so that they can afford things like that,” Wilburn said. “But also, coming here felt like a family. Coach Albin’s wife worked with my mom when I was really little and there’s just all these little ties to people within the organization it just made it really easy for me to come here.”
It’s not just the people within the football program that bonds Wilburn to the Ohio community. The Nelsonville native loves the people of Athens and the culture that comes with living in the community.
“It’s like this hippie vibe with everyone going out and getting crazy on the weekends,” Wilburn said. “One thing in Athens that’s special, and what Athens does very well, is bringing that culture to you in this very rural area. Just having social awareness of certain things and I’ve just learned so much and grown so much since I've been in Athens … I just have a really deep appreciation for it.”
Without a doubt, the people of Southeast Ohio have shaped who Wilburn is in more ways than just one and through more facets of life than just football.
“There’s a lot of hard-working people here that don’t reap the benefits (that) a lot of other people who work hard (do) elsewhere,” Wilburn said. “I’ve learned that life isn’t the greatest for everybody, everywhere. I’ve learned to have empathy for people, it’s just all-encompassed through my experiences here.”
With homecoming right around the corner, Wilburn will have plenty of people from both Athens and Nelsonville in attendance rooting for him.
“(On Homecoming) I get to perform in front of the people that formed me and shaped me (as) who I am right now,” Wilburn said. “I have old teachers who reached out to me (for tickets) ... The whole community and having everyone so close I think has definitely just been really special to me.”