When he arrived in Columbus as Ohio State‘s new head football coach in 2012, Urban Meyer had “fatheads” – full body wall decals – featuring some of the Buckeyes most notable alumni installed on the walls inside their respective positional meeting room inside the Woody Hayes Athletic Center.
Given Ohio State’s designation as college football’s WRU, the Buckeyes receiver room is lined with “fathead” pictures featuring David Boston, Chris Carter, Joey Galloway, Marvin Harrison Jr., Terry McLaurin, Chris Olave, Michael Thomas, and Garrett Wilson. For superstar sophomore wideout Jeremiah Smith, widely considered college football’s best playmaker, it’s a daily reminder of what he needs to do to have his own fathead on the wall.
“It’s very special to be apart of that room (with), like you said, all the guys that came before,” Smith told Meyer during Wednesday’s episode of The Triple Option podcast with co-hosts Mark Ingram and Rob Stone. “I feel like each day and every week we play a game, I feel like we’re obligated to go out there and perform at a high level because them guys did it each week they were here. So I feel like I’m obligated to go out each and every day and perform at a very high level.”
The 6-foot-4 and 223-pound Smith enters his second year in Columbus looking to build off last season’s breakout success when he led the Big Ten in receiving with 1,315 yards and 15 touchdowns on 76 receptions as a Five-Star Plus+ true freshman. And just based on last year’s production, Smith has a potential to finish ranked among the best Ohio State has produced at the receiver position.
Jeremiah Smith claims 2025 Ohio State wide receiving corps is better than 2024
All teams undergo some amount of turnover in college sports. Ohio State, in particular, lost a lot of key talent following its national championship run, including in the wide receiver room. Despite the loss of that key talent, star wide receiver Jeremiah Smith has returned, and he believes this unit is as good as it’s ever been.
Recently, Smith appeared on The Triple Option. There, he praised the receivers around him, including Carnell Tate and Brandon Inniss. Combined, he explained that he thinks they have made the Ohio State wide receiving corps even better than in 2024.
“Them guys, I feel like they’re going to shock a lot of people,” Smith said. “Especially Carnell. That guy there, he can do anything and everything that you ask him to do. Very smooth route runner, can block, can do it all. Brandon, the same way. He’s got that dog in him.”
Carnell Tate and Brandon Inniss are both now juniors. In Tate’s career at Ohio State, he’s now played in 30 games. In 2024, he had a breakout season. That saw him make 52 receptions for 733 yards and four touchdowns. For Inniss’ part, he’s played in 24 career games. Last season, he had 14 receptions for 176 yards and a touchdown.
“So, I feel like this year, I mean, our room is very special,” Smith said. “I feel like it’s better than last year because we can all do different things. That’s what I think.”
— On3’s Dan Morrison contributed to this report.
