The Ohio State football team cruised past Oregon in the College Football Playoff quarterfinal at the Rose Bowl on Wednesday, and freshman wide receiver Jeremiah Smith had a huge day. Smith is one of the best WRs in the country, and it showed in the Rose Bowl. He scored a huge touchdown within minutes of the game starting, and that was a preview for what the game was going to look like. He is an incredibly gifted player, and the fact that he is a true freshman is quite remarkable.
Jeremiah Smith is in his first year at Ohio State, and he is already one of the best players in all of college football. Not one of the best freshman, not one of the best WRs, but one of the best PLAYERS in the country. He can't go to the NFL until he is three years removed from high school, but one NFL Draft scout believes that if he were eligible, he would be the first overall pick.
“Julio Jones, oops I mean, Jeremiah Smith would go No. 1 in this draft,” Dane Brugler said in a post. “No doubt in my mind.”
Smith finished the Rose Bowl with seven receptions for 187 yards and two touchdowns. The Ducks just simply didn't have an answer for him. The things that he is doing are impressive for any receiver, but the fact that we are seeing this from a true freshman is unreal. Players like Smith just don't come around very often.
“He might be the most advanced receiver I’ve ever seen at that age,” One NFL executive said, according to a post from Jordan Schultz. “To be so young and so technically sound, then you add the physical tools and things get pretty freaky. Like some built in a lab stuff.”
So far this season, Jeremiah Smith has hauled in 63 receptions for 1,037 yards and 12 touchdowns. He is an absolute star, and he will be with the Ohio State football team for two more seasons after this year before he heads to the NFL. When his time to go to the league does roll around, he will probably end up being the first overall pick in the draft if he continues on the course that he is on.
Smith has already put up some absurd numbers this season, and the year isn't even over. Ohio State will have at least one more game as their win in the Rose Bowl locked up a spot in the semis. The Buckeyes are moving on and they will be taking on Texas with a spot in the national title game on the line.