The Ohio State Buckeyes will be looking to repeat what happened in the 2024-25 season, which saw them win a national championship. In 2025-26, despite the Buckeyes losing some key players, they managed to get Jeremiah Smith to return to Columbus following their championship-winning season.
It all culminated in a victory over Notre Dame. The star wide receiver told reporters Tuesday how crazy the transition has been—from someone relatively unknown less than a year ago to reaching superstar status. However, he also revealed his surprising struggle at Ohio State and how it affects his NFL timing.
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Smith has always been a man of few emotions. However, he’s had to adjust to going from being mostly unknown to one of the biggest names on campus at Ohio State.
“I don’t think I’ll ever get used to it,” Smith said. “It’s a blessing for sure to see everybody come out, all the Buckeye fans, and everybody come up to me and ask for pictures and everything. I wish I could get everybody, but I can’t do it, it’s too much sometimes.”
The increased attention hasn’t kept Smith from developing into a better player. He said this offseason is all about building on his highlight moments—specifically, his game-sealing catch against Notre Dame in the championship.
“Just because I made that one play, I have next year, the year after that. Just can’t get big-headed. I always feel like there’s room for improvement,” Smith said. “That’s one thing a lot of people mess up on, feel like, ‘Oh, they had one good year, OK, I’m relaxed.’ That’s not in me. I’m gonna continue to do it for years and years to come.”
Smith’s upside will continue to grow in his second season if he keeps making big plays while staying grounded. That’s something head coach Ryan Day sees in him regularly.
“He’s got that smile that just lights up a room, and he’s just a magnetic personality,” Day told reporters Monday. “All the recruits, when they come in, you ask them, ‘Who’d you like at practice?’ Every single one of them says Jeremiah Smith.”
“But I think with him, it’s not just the ability of what he does on the field, it’s how he works. It’s his personality, his humility, all those things.”
The Ohio State football team won’t have an easy start to the year. They’ll rematch the Texas Longhorns in Columbus to open the Power Four portion of the college football season—better yet, the season as a whole.
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With expectations at an all-time high, the Buckeyes aim to stay in title contention all year and prove last year was no fluke. Smith’s growth could be the difference.
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