Ohio State’s season may be sliding off the rails, but Jeremiah Smith is still barreling toward the Big Ten record book.
The Buckeyes have dropped back-to-back games for the first time since 2011, fallen to No. 21 in the AP poll and probably watched their playoff hopes disappear. Even so, Saturday’s matchup with Northwestern should deliver at least one bright spot for Ohio State fans: Smith is on the verge of becoming the most productive receiver in Big Ten history.
He’s sitting at 3,758 career receiving yards after catching seven passes for 133 yards and a touchdown against Oregon. That put him within striking distance of Purdue’s John Standeford, who owns the conference mark with 3,788 yards from 2000 to 2003. Smith needs just 30 yards to tie it and 31 to pass it.
For a player averaging more than 130 receiving yards per game this season, that’s a short hop. He already has 16 career 100-yard games, the most in Ohio State history, and unless things go sideways in a hurry, this record should fall early against Northwestern.
And that would only add to a career that’s already rewriting the league’s numbers. Smith has the Big Ten’s touchdown record, too.
He passed Braylon Edwards by catching his 40th career score from Luke Fahey, and he’s tacked on two more since then to reach 42. Of the conference’s three major career receiving records, only one looks out of reach: Purdue’s Taylor Stubblefield’s 325 catches from 2001 to 2004.
Smith has 232, and with three regular-season games left plus whatever postseason Ohio State gets, that one is almost certainly too far away.
Even with that, two of the three major marks in just three seasons would be a massive haul.
The Heisman conversation, though, has shifted hard.
Just three weeks ago, Smith looked like the clear favorite. That’s no longer the case.
Notre Dame quarterback CJ Carr moved to the front after leading the Irish past previously undefeated Miami on Saturday night. Carr completed 29 of 40 passes for 319 yards and three touchdowns, and his odds jumped from around 12-to-1 to the betting favorite, sitting at roughly +120 to +140 depending on the sportsbook.
Miami’s Darian Mensah is now second, with Smith down to third at around +400.
That slide has less to do with Smith’s play than with Ohio State’s stumble. He’s still second in the country with 1,200 receiving yards and tied for first with 14 touchdowns on 69 catches. He’s done it while losing Julian Sayin, working with a true freshman quarterback over the last two games and drawing extra attention on nearly every snap.
But the Heisman race has never been kind to receivers, and team success matters. Ohio State sits at 6-3 after consecutive losses to USC and Oregon, and with the Buckeyes likely out of the College Football Playoff, a non-quarterback from a team outside the field becomes a tough sell. The award usually goes to the best player on one of the best teams, and voters tend to lean toward quarterbacks in the biggest moments.
DeVonta Smith in 2020 was the last receiver to win it, and Alabama finished that season by taking the national championship.
So Jeremiah Smith probably needed Ohio State to stay in the playoff hunt to really break through the quarterback bias.
Still, the Heisman door isn’t completely shut. He should remain a finalist and likely earn an invitation to New York for the ceremony on Dec.
- He’s breaking records that have stood for more than 20 years, and the voters know he’s been the best player in college football for the past three seasons.
Winning the trophy would now take a lot more: huge performances against Northwestern, Nebraska and especially Michigan, plus some help from Carr and Mensah slipping up down the stretch.
Even if that doesn’t happen, Saturday still carries its own significance. In a season that has gone sideways for Ohio State, Smith is about to become the Big Ten’s all-time leading receiver.
In Other News...
Ohio State Finally Made A Change Fans Saw Coming
Ohio State made the kind of midseason move fans had been expecting after a string of special teams breakdowns kept showing up at the worst possible moments. Robby Discher was fired after nine games, with the Buckeyes issues on that phase of the game becoming harder to ignore as penalties and momentum-swinging mistakes piled up in recent losses.
Ryan Day said there had simply been too many detrimental plays to keep things as they were, and the staff is now reshuffling responsibilities to finish the season. Senior analyst Rob Keys will oversee special teams the rest of the way, with other coaches taking on specific units, a sign that Ohio State is trying to steady one of the most frustrating parts of its operation before it costs them again. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio States Backup Quarterback Problem Just Got More Complicated
Justyn Martins role at Ohio State has become one of those quiet depth-chart stories that can suddenly matter a lot more than anyone expected. The fifth-year senior has not played this season, but with Julian Sayin sidelined, Martin is now listed as the third-string quarterback, and Ryan Day has already made it clear he likes what he has seen from him in practice. For a team that always has to be ready at quarterback, that kind of behind-the-scenes trust can carry real weight.
Martin has kept working alongside Luke Fahey and Tavien St. Clair, staying in the mix while the Buckeyes sort through their options. He has spoken confidently about the group and noted that Sayin remains supportive during his recovery, which only adds another layer to a situation that is still unfolding. For now, Martin is waiting for a chance that has not come yet, but the fact that Day is even floating game usage suggests Ohio States backup picture is far from settled. [Read more 🡒]
Chip Kelly Is Suddenly Back In Ohio State's Offensive Picture
Chip Kellys name is back in the mix around Ohio State, and not just as a nostalgic footnote. The former Buckeyes assistant, now at Northwestern, has surfaced in conversations about offensive play-caller openings, with his past tie to the program giving the idea immediate credibility. For a staff that is always under the microscope, any movement on the offensive side tends to draw attention quickly, especially when it involves a coach with Kellys rsum and familiarity with the Ohio State environment.
The broader picture is still fluid, though, because Nebraska is also being linked to Kelly and may try to sell him on the stature of the job rather than a simple financial pitch. For Ohio State, the possibility seems tied to whether current staff changes open a path, which is why the chatter feels more like a developing subplot than a settled pursuit. Even so, the fact that Kelly is being discussed in that context says plenty about how quickly the Buckeyes offensive landscape can shift. [Read more 🡒]