PASADENA, Calif. - Jeremiah Smith is rewriting the history books for a freshman Ohio State wide receiver. His performance in the Rose Bowl Game made him a household name, but he has dominated all season for the Buckeyes.
Smith was the number-one ranked high school overall recruit by 247 Sports in the 2024 class. As a true freshman, he has 1,224 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns. He had 118 yards in the first quarter alone in the Rose Bowl and did it on four receptions.
Oregon had no answer for him, and he delivered every time the Buckeyes needed a big play.
Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith (4) caught seven passes for 187 yards and two touchdowns in his team's 41-21 win against the University of Oregon in the Rose Bowl Game in Pasadena, California on Jan. 1, 2025. Photo credit: Sammy Saludo/News4usonline
This is the same program that has produced Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Garrett Wilson, Chris Olave, and Marvin Harrision Jr over the past couple of years, and none of them made close to the same impact Smith has in their first college season.
"I think that the way that he has come in from the get-go, he had a look in his eye that he wanted to make an impact as a freshman," said head coach Ryan Day after the Rose Bowl.
"He has earned the respect of his teammates not because of his ability but because of his work ethic every day. He comes in serious; he doesn’t say a whole lot, but when he does, people listen. His maturity physically, emotionally, and mentally has allowed him to play like this," Day continued.
With his most recent performance, Smith broke Chris Carter's thirty-year-old freshman receiving record for yards in a game with 187 after already crushing Carter's single-season mark by 576 yards and counting.
Smith is somewhat of a cheat code at the position. He possesses the type of size, speed, and ball skills that make a pass catcher nearly unguardable.
"When you have a kid that is that talented and mature at that young age, you don't find that very often. I am just thankful that he is on my team. He is a hell of a player, and he is only getting better from here, and that is the crazy thing. I think when it is all said and done, he could be one of the best players ever to play this game. He has that kind of potential," said quarterback Will Howard.
Smith also recorded his fifth game this season with at least 100 receiving yards, the only Ohio State freshman to do so. He is not eligible for the draft until 2027, and when that time comes, NFL teams will be salivating at the opportunity to take him with their top pick.
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