The Ohio State Buckeyes opened their season tonight against the Texas Longhorns at the Ohio Stadium. The highly awaited game turned controversial when fans noticed a Fox Sports blunder involving Arvell Reese and Jeremiah Smith.
When Reese, a second-year linebacker for the Buckeyes, was making his way to the ground, the Fox Sports announcers mistook him for Smith. They even added the wrong name tag on the screen while talking about Smith.
“The All-American, Jeremiah Smith,” they were heard saying. “15 touchdowns last season, one in the semifinals against Texas, just one reception for three yards.”
Official Ohio State DG on X spotted the mistake and recorded it from his TV.
“Fox is an embarrassment. That’s not Jeremiah Smith. That’s Arvell Reese,” he captioned the clip.
Fox is an embarrassment.
Thats not Jeremiah Smith.
Thats Arvell Reese pic.twitter.com/wSh65KE1QJ
— Official Ohio State DG (@DylanEveryday) August 30, 2025
Fans quickly got involved in the issue and called out Fox Sports on social media. A fan posted a GIF that read:
“That’s racist!”
— James T. Yoder (@JamesYoder) August 30, 2025
“Yea this is wild,” a fan wrote.
Yea this is wild
— tre (@trey63st) August 30, 2025
Many fans called it being ignorant, while some felt like it was racist to mistake one player for another.
“Someone has had a little too much alcohol already! The game hasn’t even started yet,” a fan commented.
“It’s literally impossible for Fox disrespect Ohio State more than they have already. Buckeyes by 100,” another wrote.
“They saw a black kid with dreads and was like yea thats him😂” a fan wrote.
“All dreadheads look alike is what FOX said 🤣🤣🤣” another posted.
Apart from this debacle, the game has gone in the Buckeyes favor so far. At the end of third quarter, they led the game 7-0. Everything that defensive coordinator for the Ohio State Buckeyes, Matt Patricia said about his team a day before has proven to be right.
Matt Patricia on his team’s combination being right
With players like Sonny Styles and Arvell Reese, a coach’s job becomes much easier. They just need to figure out how to use them effectively, and that pretty much seals the game in their favor.
Matt Patricia had that vision before the game and is seemingly on top of his plan.
“Really versatile players,” Patricia said. “Guys that have great length, great size, great speed, and they can cover a lot of range. I think it’s more than just the skills that they have when you’re looking at schemes. Just the space that they can occupy in coverage or in the run game.”
He praised their ability to cover ground and make it difficult for the opposition to find a way out. The Buckeyes are a very versatile team with some of the best players in the country.
Even when their competition is against Texas, the team that many consider unbeatable this season, the strategy seems to have them on lock. With 13 minutes to go in the fourth quarter, Ohio State had a 14-0 lead in the game.
Read More:
Jeremiah Smith Makes Feelings Very Clear On Ohio State’s Biggest Rival Entering 2025-26 Season
Biletnikoff Award Watch List: Full List Of Candidates For Prestigious Honor Ft. Jeremiah Smith
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