Jeremiah Smith didn’t need a full afternoon to make his point.
In Ohio State’s 56-3 rout of Ball State, the star receiver piled up 151 receiving yards, eight catches and two touchdowns before halftime, then watched the rest from the sideline as Ryan Day kept him out after the break. With the Buckeyes already in control and Texas looming in Week 2, Day chose to protect his top weapon and give younger players a chance to work.
Smith had already done more than enough. One half was all it took to turn the opener into something that looked a lot like a Heisman campaign launch.
That kind of start does not win the trophy, of course, but it certainly gets the conversation moving. And Smith’s resume entering the season was already outrageous. Over his first two years, the 6-foot-4, 222-pound junior had collected 163 receptions for 2,558 yards and 27 touchdowns, making him the first Big Ten receiver to reach those marks through two seasons.
He also came into this year with back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons, a feat only three receivers in Ohio State history had managed.
After Saturday, Smith’s career numbers jumped to 171 catches, 2,709 yards and 29 touchdowns. He is now within striking distance of all three major Ohio State receiving records, sitting 35 receptions, 190 yards and seven touchdowns shy of the school marks.
Those records belong to Michael Jenkins, who has the yardage mark with 2,898, Emeka Egbuka, who owns the receptions record with 205, and Chris Olave, who holds the touchdown record with 35.
What makes Smith’s chase so striking is how early it could all happen. He is close enough to realistically threaten every one of those numbers during the first half of his junior season.
The bigger question, though, is whether the Heisman voters will be willing to treat a wide receiver like the center of the sport’s biggest individual award. The first test of that case arrives quickly.
Ohio State heads to Texas in Week 2 for a rematch of last season’s 14-7 Buckeye win. The Longhorns are coming off a 59-7 victory over Texas State, with Arch Manning throwing for 305 yards and four touchdowns. This time, the Buckeyes will face a more seasoned quarterback and a Texas team that believes it belongs in the national title mix.
That stage matters for Smith. Ohio State already has a returning Heisman finalist at quarterback in Julian Sayin, along with a deep group of playmakers around him. Sayin threw for 3,610 yards and 32 touchdowns in 2025 while completing 77 percent of his passes, and Smith was a unanimous All-American after finishing last season with 1,243 yards and 12 touchdowns.
It is the kind of setup that can feed a monster season. Smith does not have to post 150 yards every week. What he needs is steady production, big-game moments and enough volume to force voters to notice him even at a position that usually gets pushed aside in the Heisman race.
That remains the uphill battle. The last wide receiver to win the award was Alabama’s DeVonta Smith in 2020, and quarterbacks have largely controlled the trophy since then.
So yes, the opener was only Ball State. But 151 yards, two touchdowns and a first-half exit is about as loud a beginning as Smith could have asked for.
He is already within 35 catches, 190 yards and seven touchdowns of becoming Ohio State’s career leader in all three major receiving categories. And now the next stop is Austin.
In Other News...
Ohio State Looks Strong But Michigan Already Has A Big Ten Problem
After Week 1, the Big Ten mostly stayed in line with expectations, and Ohio State was right where it wanted to be near the top after a decisive opening win. Indiana joined the Buckeyes in holding onto the conferences upper tier, a sign that the leagues early order is already taking shape even if most teams still have plenty to prove.
Michigan, meanwhile, created the first real headache in the standings, squeezing out a narrow and controversial win that left more questions than answers. Rutgers also took a hit with an upset loss, and with early-season results already nudging the rankings around, the next few weeks should tell us far more about which teams are actually built to stay there. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio State Is Suddenly In Play For Two Huge 2028 Targets
Ohio States season-opening rout of Ball State did more than get the Buckeyes off to a fast start on the field. It also gave the staff a chance to showcase the program to a sizable group of visitors, and the early returns in the 2028 recruiting cycle are already starting to matter as the class begins to take shape around both sides of the ball.
Among the names worth tracking are five-star wide receiver Braylon Clark and four-star safety Jalen Flowers, both of whom have Ohio State among their top schools. The Buckeyes already have commitments from several offensive and defensive prospects, and the staff is clearly pushing to build on that foundation while the 2028 board is still forming. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan Already Has A Problem Ohio State Fans Will Love
The first AP Top 25 poll after Week 1 already delivered an early jolt in the Big Ten race, and it was one Ohio State fans were happy to see. Michigan, which entered the season at No. 16, dropped out of the rankings after a shaky opener while the Buckeyes and Texas both handled their business with dominant wins.
Michigans immediate task is straightforward, even if the pressure around it is not: stack together convincing performances and avoid leaving any doubt for the poll voters. After the opening-week escape against Western Michigan, the Wolverines do not have much margin for error, and they will need a much cleaner run in the weeks ahead to climb back into the Top 25. [Read more 🡒]