Jeremiah Smith has already rewritten Ohio State’s record book, and he still isn’t done chasing the one thing he wants most.
After the Buckeyes’ dominant win over Iowa, Smith made it clear that personal milestones aren’t the main thing on his mind. He’d like to keep pushing in the Heisman race, sure, but the bigger target is another national title.
“Bring the team a National Championship ... I'm very committed to that.”
Jeremiah Smith on what he still has to accomplish this season after breaking OSU WR records 🏆 pic.twitter.com/3VKnpxEeSC
- Bleacher Report CFB (@BR_CFB) October 3, 2026
When asked what’s left for him to accomplish at Ohio State, Smith didn’t dance around it.
“Bring the team a national championship,” Smith said. “That's all I've been chasing since the start of fall camp. That's the goal of mine before I leave here, and I'm very committed to that.”
That’s the kind of answer that lands with Buckeye fans. Smith already set new Ohio State career marks for touchdowns, yards, and receptions, but he’s still talking like a player with unfinished business. He stayed put despite efforts from other teams to lure him into the transfer portal, and now he’s got a chance to finish his college run by delivering the kind of ending every star dreams about.
A championship is at the top of the list, but Smith also wants one more shot at TTUN. Ohio State and Ryan Day got their revenge on the Wolverines in Ann Arbor last season, and Smith knows the late-November matchup in The Shoe will carry plenty of weight again. After that comes the bigger picture: a Big Ten title, then the College Football Playoff, where the Buckeyes still carry the sting of the loss to Miami in '25.
There’s been one loss so far this season, a heartbreaking one to No. 1 Texas, but otherwise Ohio State has looked terrific through five weeks. Smith and the Buckeyes are heading into the toughest stretch of the schedule, and he’s only getting stronger with every game.
Through five contests, Smith has 44 receptions for 823 yards and nine touchdowns. Those numbers keep his Heisman buzz alive, and they also make it easy to understand why he looks like a virtual lock to be a Top 5 pick in the 2027 NFL Draft.
Before that next chapter arrives, though, Smith still has one thing he wants to give Ohio State: another national championship.
In Other News...
Former Ohio State Coach Brian Hartline Just Took A Brutal First Step Back
Brian Hartlines first months at South Florida had gone smoothly enough, with the former Ohio State offensive coordinator off to a 4-1 start before a stumble at UTSA snapped the momentum. The trip also came with a side note that got plenty of attention, after Hartline made comments about the noise inside the opponents stadium and then had those remarks revisited in a very public way once the game was over.
From Ohio States perspective, Hartlines next chapter is still part of the larger coaching tree story, but the Buckeyes have their own issues to sort out as the schedule rolls on. The offense has had trouble getting the rushing game where it needs to be, and while Hartline is now trying to settle in as a head coach, his rough first step back served as another reminder that the margins get small fast once conference and nonconference tests start to pile up. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio States Elite Passing Game Is Hiding A Bigger Running Back Issue
Ohio States passing game has been humming along at a level few teams in the country can match, but the ground game is carrying a very different kind of conversation. The Buckeyes sit 81st in rushing yards per attempt, a ranking that stands out for a team with this much offensive firepower and one that has had to lean on a rotating backfield rather than finding a clear weekly answer.
The workload has bounced among Ja'Kobi Jackson, Bo Jackson and Isaiah West, with true freshman Legend Bey also part of the early mix. Beys limited role has drawn attention because of questions around why his touches have thinned out, and while there has been speculation about professionalism concerns, nothing has been officially confirmed. For a team built to pressure defenses in every way, the bigger issue may be less about who is getting the carries and more about whether Ohio State has settled on the right one. [Read more 🡒]
Maryland Brings Coaching Drama And A Defense Ohio State Can Exploit
Maryland arrives with plenty of noise around the program, and not much of it has anything to do with what happens between the lines. The uncertainty around Mike Locksleys future has hung over the Terps for a while now, with the athletic director potentially waiting until after the bye week to make a call, and that backdrop only adds to the sense that Ohio State is catching Maryland at a tense moment. At the same time, the offensive side has slipped, with Malik Washingtons play trending down and the Terps searching for steadier footing.
There is still enough on the defensive front to make Maryland worth studying, especially along the line, where a few key pieces can flash and disrupt a game if the rest of the unit holds together. The problem, as Michael Howes pointed out, is that the tackling has not been dependable enough, and those misses have repeatedly undercut the defense. For Ohio State, that creates a familiar sort of opportunity, one that starts with pressure up front and can quickly turn into a longer afternoon for a defense already carrying too much uncertainty. [Read more 🡒]