Look at the body, the stretch, and no one around him. From day one, no one has been close to Buckeye freshman Jeremiah Smith. (File Photos)
True freshmen are rarely a factor at Ohio State, especially on a team as experienced as this one. But Jeremiah Smith is already doing things most freshmen don’t, and he’s going to be ready to do it on Saturdays.
Columbus, OH – You don’t have to be a prophet to know who the next Ohio State player is that Fox’s Gus Johnson will gush over.
Last year “Gush” Johnson gave us Maserati Marv, which was preceded by Jaaaay Teeee BARRETT. What will Gus do with Jeremiah Smith? Don’t worry. Something will come to him when the moment is right. It always does.
Veteran columnist Jeff Gilbert writes Ohio State basketball and OHSAA sports for Press Pros Magazine.com.
The casual fan will ask: Who is Jeremiah Smith? What position does he play?
You need to get to know him. The fans dialed into recruiting know exactly who Smith is. He is a 6-foot-3, 215-pound, 18-year-old wide receiver who already looks physically built for the NFL. Cris Carter and Marvin Harrison Jr. say Smith is the next great Buckeye receiver.
Smith is from Florida and was the nation’s No. 1 rated player in the class of 2024. That hype never ensures a player will be a freshman factor, ever become a star, or be a first-round NFL draft pick as his 5-star status suggests.
And by this point of preseason camp, nobody inside the Woody Hayes Athletic Center cares about stars or ratings or potential. But Smith has quickly moved past those now meaningless labels. He has new ones that stack more layers of credibility on his resume.
After four days of spring practice in March, Smith became the fastest player to have the black stripe removed from his helmet since Urban Meyer began the tradition in 2012. This coming-of-age moment told everyone that Smith had proven himself as a hard-working member of the program.
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Last week Smith was named one of 10 Iron Buckeyes by strength and conditioning coach Mickey Marotti for his work during offseason training. The other nine were juniors, seniors or graduate students. Hanging out with the big kids and proving yourself to be mature means something to Smith, and it didn’t happen by accident. Smith said his dad tells him to act older than his age.
“He embodied everything that is a part of that conversation,” co-offensive coordinator and receivers coach Brian Hartline said. “It’s not just lifting numbers, speed numbers. It is the way you carry yourself, the way you train, the edge to you.”
On August 31 at 3:30 p.m. against Akron, be prepared to meet Mr. Smith. Whether or not he starts, he will play when it matters. He won’t be waiting on the sidelines till late in the season to show how good he is like the recent first rounders have done.
Head coach Ryan Day sees Smith’s talents every day, but he said earlier this summer he will rein in his comments on saying too much too soon and adding pressure to his young receiver.
After the first practice on August 1, Day was asked if he would be able to live up to that statement.
“We’re gonna try,” he said and smiled.
But he couldn’t quite help himself.
“I don’t want to put too much out there,” says Ryan Day. “But he (Smith) has a very bright future.”
“I don’t want to put too much out there, but he had a great offseason and did some things some freshmen haven’t done before in terms of recognition and some of the hard work he’s doing,” Day said. “We’re excited that he’s out there every day. But again, I don’t want to get too far out in front of this … but he’s got a very bright future.”
What Day isn’t saying tells you all you need to know about the next great OSU receiver. He’s decided Smith’s play will do the talking, and he knows it will happen soon.
“He puts the work in off the field, and if he doesn’t make the play, he’s hard on himself,” Day said last week. “Rare do you find somebody who’s as talented as is he is but has really good discipline and skill at that age. We haven’t played a game yet, but he’s building a lot of respect amongst his teammates.”
Smith earned more respect at Thursday’s practice. In a red-zone drill, cornerback Davison Igbinosun broke up a fade pass intended for Smith.
“I’m here,” said Igbinosun, who is known for big-play celebrations and trash talk.
“OK, I’ll be back,” the soft-spoken Smith said.
Smith was a prophet. Later in practice he caught a ball down the sideline with Igbinosun in tight coverage.
“I told you, I’m coming back, right?” Smith said.
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The 50-50 ball is one Smith is turning into 70-30 balls in his favor. That competitive nature, he said, was sparked when he began catching footballs before he turned 10.
“When I see a 50-50 ball, I just think I gotta make the play,” Smith said. “And it’s on me no matter how bad the ball is. That’s the reason why I chose to come to Ohio State, just to compete each and every day against the best DB group in the country.”
Don’t expect Smith to be demonstrative on the field other than catching passes and scoring touchdowns. He might riff a little trash talk now and then, but you won’t notice.
“Just a quiet person who is all about his business,” he said.
Smith said the attention on him began to pick up after his sophomore season in high school. Then during his senior season Ohio State fans came to his games.
“I was like, ‘Whoa, I never had that happen before,’” he said. “That’s crazy.”
To hear Day talk about Smith the person, it’s not surprising Smith would have that kind of reaction to extra attention.
“You talk about the humility of a young man who is as talented as he is, it’s special,” Day said.
So far Smith seems to be deflecting the attention on social media, from fans and from the media that covers every facet of the Buckeyes. And he’s not letting the NIL deals of a driving a new Dodge Durango 392 or starring in an American Eagle commercial take his mind off football.
“You don’t want that hype to affect you,” Smith said. “I just like to be a normal person, I don’t really like attention like that. I’m still learning.
“I’m just a freshman.”
We’ll see what Gus has to say about that.
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