Jeremiah Smith is only in his fourth game of the college football season, but continues to put up impressive numbers as an early viable contender for this year's Heisman Trophy. The Ohio State wide receiver had a career-best day on Saturday, as the Buckeyes racked up plenty of offense, blowing out the Illinois Fighting Illini, 42-19. Quarterback Julian Sayin had a big game, and once again, Smith was his top target in the receiving corps.
In the latest game, Smith tallied 217 receiving yards and four touchdowns on his 12 receptions. He averaged 18.1 yards per reception in a monster performance for the Buckeyes. Not only was it a career-best game for the highly touted NFL prospect, but he also made history, as his school revealed on Saturday afternoon.
In an Ohio State Football X post, they announced that Smith became the first Ohio State player in the program's history to record 3,000 receiving yards. More news: Paul Finebaum Names Surprise Heisman Trophy Darkhorse No One Saw Coming Today's game was the first Big Ten matchup of the season for an Ohio State team previously ranked No. 1 overall. Smith was coming off a surprising 85-yard, no-touchdown performance in Ohio State's 59-3 rout of Kent State last Saturday.
Before that, Smith had 16 receptions, 315 yards, and three touchdowns combined in his team's games against Ball State and Texas. The latter of those teams, the Longhorns, gave the Buckeyes their first loss of the season and then took over their No. 1 spot atop the AP Top 25. Today's game easily keeps Smith among this season's potential Heisman Trophy contenders.
Ahead of the Week 4 win over Illinois, Smith reportedly had +1200 odds to win the Heisman Trophy and was tied with Miami wide receiver Malachi Toney, among others. Last year's final contenders for the award included three quarterbacks and one running back, Notre Dame's Jeremiyah Love. Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza was named the winner and then led the Hoosiers to win the CFP National Championship.
The No. 7 Buckeyes seem like a team destined for a return trip to the College Football Playoffs, after the Miami Hurricanes defeated them in last year's postseason. If Ohio State continues its winning ways, Smith is likely to be a major part of their success. With that, he could have a serious case to become the first full-time wide receiver to win the Heisman since DeVonta Smith claimed the award in 2020 with the Alabama Crimson Tide.
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