Jeremiah Smith is on pace to shatter three huge Ohio State records

The legacy of the Ohio State wide receiver corps runs deep. From legends like Cris Carter to Michael Jenkins, there has never been a doubt that the Buckeyes pump out elite receiving talent.

Within the last 10 years, Ohio State has made its case to be crowned “Wide Receiver University.” Players such as Emeka Egbuka, Marvin Harrison Jr., Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Garrett Wilson, to name a few, all hail from Columbus, and all have become top wide receivers in the National Football League.

Despite all these great names, one Buckeye receiver looks to cement his name as the greatest Ohio State wide receiver of all time, a potential future No. 1 overall pick and someone on pace to shatter the records and become the all-time triple crown leader.

Sophomore Jeremiah Smith, through a season and a half of his college football career, is projected to become the program’s all-time leader in receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns. Here’s a breakdown of the current record holders, and what Smith needs to accomplish in order to be immortalized in the record books.

Smith is currently tied with current Tampa Bay Buccaneers receiver Egbuka, who himself is having a special rookie season in the NFL, and Brian Robiskie in receiving touchdowns. In just 24 games, Smith has hauled in 24 touchdowns, which lands him in seventh place on the leaderboard.

The Florida native needs 11 more touchdowns to tie current New Orleans Saints receiver Chris Olave, who sits atop the list with 35. With Smith averaging a touchdown a game, he may become the leader through the beginning of next season. Keep those early games next year against Texas and Kent State circled, those may contain record-breaking performances.

Speaking of Egbuka, the former Buckeye tops the all-time receptions list. Throughout four seasons, Egbuka caught 205 passes, a four-reception lead over K.J. Hill, who set the record in 2019. Smith sits 14 spots back from No. 1 and is rapidly approaching.

With 131 catches under his belt, the sophomore phenom needs 74 more receptions to reach Egbuka’s record. Smith is averaging 5.5 receptions a game, if he keeps up the same production, he will break the receptions record in about 14 games.

The all-time receiving yards record is also held by Egbuka, who finished his Buckeye career with 2,868 yards. Smith is set to break this record the fastest. With 2,040 yards halfway through his sophomore year, he is projected to surpass Egbuka in 10 games, needing 858 more yards.

There is a reason why Smith became the highest-rated recruit in the 2024 class, why top schools like Miami, Florida State and Georgia heavily recruited him and why his pro comparison starts with NFL legend Julio Jones.

Back when Smith committed to Ohio State in 2022, hype only continued to build until his first season, and now, it seems all that hype, and then some, was completely warranted.

So far in the sophomore’s second season, he has 55 receptions for 725 yards and nine touchdowns, with wide receiver teammate Carnell Tate close behind, catching 39 passes for 711 yards and seven touchdowns.

If Smith can stay healthy and continue posting elite numbers in the latter half of his Ohio State career, expect to witness history in the Buckeye record books.