Former Ohio State Star Caleb Downs Shares Valuable Advice to New OC Arthur Smith

The Ohio State Buckeyes made a significant move on Saturday by hiring former Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith for the same position.

Coaching Ohio State's offense must be a dream come true for many coaches, as they have the opportunity to work with some of the best players in the country.

Caleb Downs has advice for Smith

One of the standout players is wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, who is gearing up for his junior year. While he still has one more year of college football before he can enter the NFL, his former teammate, Caleb Downs who is headed to the NFL this fall, offered some advice for the new offensive coordinator.

"Get the ball to 4," Downs said Tuesday on the "Downs 2 Business" podcast.

“I just want the ball, for real!” 👀

Josh & Caleb Downs link up with former Ohio State WR Carnell Tate as he and Caleb prepare for the NFL Draft.

Full episode drops tomorrow 🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/bKINgpuZWE
— Downs 2 Business (@downs2business) January 27, 2026

Smith wears the No.4 jersey, and getting the ball to him is definitely a smart move. In two seasons, Smith recorded 163 receptions for 2,558 yards and 27 touchdowns over 29 games.

There may be a challenge in getting the ball to Smith next season. Over the past two seasons, Smith played alongside talented wide receivers. In his first season, he played alongside Emeka Egbuka and Carnell Tate, and last season, he continued to team up with Tate.

However, Tate is entering the 2026 NFL Draft, while Egbuka is already in the league. Smith will be the veteran presence in the receiving group this season, allowing teams to focus less on covering other receivers as tightly. This might give other players the chance to step up and make plays, as teams could leverage the strategy of letting someone else beat them.

Even though Smith is expected to face tough defense from opponents in 2026, he will likely find a way to shine against Michigan no matter the circumstances.

Smith talked about how much he can't stand Michigan last summer.

"I'm not a sore loser, but I hate losing, and losing to That Team Up North was pretty crazy," Smith told The Athletic last summer, via Ehsan Kassim from the Columbus Dispatch. "In the end, I think it really helped us play the way we did in the playoffs. But I didn't want to go to Ohio State and lose to That Team Up North

"I just hate them. Just something about them. For the next two years, I promise you, I will not lose to them. I can't lose to them in the next two years."

It will be interesting to see how Smith does in a possible new offensive scheme.