NFL can wait: Ohio State's Jeremiah Smith keeps pro talk at bay while chasing Buckeyes history

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Jeremiah Smith is expected to be the first non-QB drafted and an impact superstar when he heads to the NFL next year.

The only thing Smith worries about is the present and making sure he leaves as Ohio State’s all-time leading wide receiver.

“I focus on what’s right now, and that’s Ohio State football,” Smith said during Big Ten media days. “I’m not really focusing on the NFL but trying to make everybody around me better. That’s what all the greats did — Tom Brady, Kobe Bryant, that’s what LeBron James is doing. That’s what I’m trying to do.”

Smith — a preseason AP All-America pick after being a first-team selection last season — has the most receptions (163), receiving yards (2,558) and touchdowns (27) by a Big Ten wide receiver in their first two years of college. The 27 scores are the third-most by a receiver through their sophomore season in the Football Bowl Subdivision since 2005.

He wants to make sure his third season in scarlet and gray, starting Saturday when the top-ranked Buckeyes host Ball State, is his best yet.

Not only is Smith looking to lead the Buckeyes to their second national championship in three years, but he also wants to claim the Biletnikoff Trophy as the nation’s top receiver as well as become the first wide receiver since Alabama’s DeVonta Smith to win the Heisman Trophy.

“What he’s meant to the game on the field but also off the field is tremendous,” coach Ryan Day said. “He has a chance to leave a legacy behind. He knows that. He has a generation of young players that look up to him, who he is. He’s a household name.”

The best of them all?

For a program with six wide receivers selected in the first round since 2022, Smith stands alone.

That has been true since he arrived at the Woody Hayes Center in 2024 as the nation’s consensus top prospect.

Smith was the first freshman in program history to receive “Iron Buckeye” honors, given to players who excel in offseason workouts.

He had 76 receptions for 1,315 yards and 15 touchdowns in 2024. He averaged 20.1 yards per catch and scored five touchdowns during Ohio State’s four-game College Football Playoff run after their season appeared dead following a loss to Michigan in the regular-season finale.

Smith’s 56-yard reception in the fourth quarter during the title game against Notre Dame set up a late field goal that ensured the Buckeyes their first national championship since 2014.

“I adapted well coming in, with a lot of hype around my name, trying to calm it down and keep it contained. It was crazy when I first got here,” Smith said.

Smith had 87 catches for 1,243 yards and 12 touchdowns last season despite missing 1 1/2 games with a quad injury. Still not fully healthy against Michigan, he scored a 32-yard touchdown for the go-ahead score.

One of the few bright spots in losses to Indiana in the Big Ten title game and Miami in the CFP quarterfinal, Smith had 15 catches for 302 yards and a TD.

New year, new focus

Smith enters the season with his third offensive coordinator in as many years.

Chip Kelly directed the Buckeyes offense in 2004 before moving to the NFL and later Northwestern. Receivers coach Brian Hartline took over play calling last year before becoming head coach at South Florida.

Enter Arthur Smith, whose résumé is rooted in the NFL, including the past two seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Cortez Hankton was hired as receivers coach after four years at LSU.

“Is there ever such a thing as giving the ball too often to Jeremiah Smith?,” Arthur Smith said during the spring. “I got asked if I gave the ball too many times to Derrick Henry (when he was the Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator), and I didn’t."

While Jeremiah Smith is known for highlight catches and separating on deep passes, he could be used more on wide receiver screens or jet sweeps. He has 26 receptions behind the line of scrimmage in the past two seasons but only four outside the hash marks. He also has nine rushing attempts.

Smith may be used more in the slot. According to Pro Football Focus, he has lined up as a slot receiver on only 16.6% of his snaps.

“That’s what makes this challenge fun,” Arthur Smith said. “He can change the game on any play. I mean, whether it’s a deep shot or anything underneath, I mean, he’s such a unique player, and certainly that changes your thinking. That’s the adage — try to build around your best player and get your best player in the ball.”

The road ahead

Smith has already achieved one goal by being named team captain. For someone who admitted he didn’t come out of his shell until this year, it was an accomplishment that made him tear up upon hearing it.

“When you’re a captain here, you leave a legacy with all the guys who were captains before. I think that’s why JJ wanted to be a captain so much because he knows who the other captains were at Ohio State,” said fellow receiver and captain Brandon Inniss. “Anyone who knows JJ, he’s quiet. So it’s great to see him out of his shell and leading this team; everyone listens to him because of what he does on the field.”

Ohio State could face six ranked teams for the first time since 2005, including three squads ranked in the top six in the AP Preseason Top 25.

The Buckeyes’ first major test comes on Sept. 12 at fourth-ranked Texas. It will be the third straight season the teams have met, with Ohio State winning both.

After facing the Longhorns last season, the Buckeyes were not tested again until the final regular-season game at Michigan. The lack of competition was evident in the second halves against the Hoosiers and Hurricanes.

With more expected — individually and as a team — Smith is ready.

“It’s probably my last season here, but it’s going to be a show. It’s my obligation to go out for hopefully my last season and put on the show for Buckeye Nation,” he said.

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