Ohio State Coach Reveals Major Change for Jeremiah Smith

An Ohio State Buckeyes coach has noticed a big change in wide receiver Jeremiah Smith.

Ohio State Buckeyes wide receivers Brandon Inniss (1) and Jeremiah Smith (4) warm up during spring football practice at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center on March 17, 2025. / Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Heading into last year, not many knew exactly what to expect from Ohio State Buckeyes wide receiver Jeremiah Smith. Everyone knew he was an uber-talented prospect with unlimited potential, but he was still just a freshman.

Well, Smith exceeded expectations and then some during his debut campaign, hauling in 76 receptions for 1,315 yards and 15 touchdowns en route to helping Ohio State win a national championship.

Now, the stage has been set for Smith to possibly have a historic career with the Buckeyes, and offensive coordinator Brian Hartline has notice one significant change in the star pass-catcher in spring practice: he is becoming more of a leader.

“Originally as a leader, he’s a by-example kind of young man,” Hartline told reporters. “He’s not going to say a whole lot, at least in years past. I would say growing would be that way. He’s being a little more outspoken. I think he’s speaking more in the receiver room. Even conversations that we have, I definitely feel more and more intellect and football IQ and all that has been growing.”

Smith is now an elder statesman in the Ohio State receiver room, as it lost Emeka Egbuka to the NFL Draft this offseason and is now returning Smith, Carnell Tate and a bunch of inexperienced faces. With that, he is directing quite a bit more than he was a year ago.

“He’s a little more outspoken than he was when he first walked in – since when he walked in, it was zero. It’s definitely a little more than that," Hartline added.

We'll see what Smith has in store for 2025, and we will also see how much he influences the rest of Ohio State's receiving corps.

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