Florida State working hard to flip Ohio State WR commit Jeremiah Smith
Hollywood (Fla.) Chaminade-Madonna Five-Star Plus+ wide receiver Jeremiah Smith committed to Ohio State on Dec. 14, but his recruitment continues to take center stage ahead of his senior season.
Smith, the No. 1 overall prospect in the 2024 cycle, per the On3 Industry Rankings, made his rounds during June, taking multiple official visits, including another trip to Tallahassee to visit Florida State. He arrived on June 19 for his fifth visit with head coach Mike Norvell, wide receivers coach Ron Dugans and offensive coordinator Alex Atkins.
With Chaminade-Madonna’s first game of the 2024 season just two weeks away, Smith sat down for an interview with The Florida Football Scout, breaking down his latest visit to FSU and his relationship with the Seminoles’ staff.
Norvell “one of the best head coaches in college football”
While Smith is committed to Ohio State and coach Ryan Day, the 6-foot-3, 200-pound wideout is quick to praise Norvell, placing the fourth-year skipper in the upper echelon of college football coaches.
“The visit went well, I had a great time with coach Mike Norvell, coach Ron Dugans and Coach Atkins, the offensive coordinator. I mostly had a great time with (Norvell), I sat down in his office … one of the best head coaches in college football, to me.” Smith said.
Smith has witnessed the turnaround of FSU under Norvell, recently highlighted by the Noles’ 10-3 season in 2022. Having been recruited by the in-state program for some time, Smith remembers hearing of Norvell’s plans as a freshman in 2020.
“The vision he has for that program, he’s getting it back to where it used to be, for sure,” Smith said. “He told me that my freshman year when I sat down in his office and he kept his word to me, for sure.”
“The vibe is definitely different” at FSU in 2023
Having taken a heap of visits to Florida State across the years, Smith has noticed a difference amongst the coaching staff and the program as a whole from his first visit back in June 2021 to this past June.
“There’s definitely something different, I could see it before when I first went up there and (Norvell) first got the head coaching job, to now, it’s definitely different, the vibe is definitely different, energy is different, all the coaches have great energy,” Smith said.
Dugans, one of FSU’s lead recruiters for Smith, is one of the coaches helping curate that vibe that leaves the Seminoles in the mix for the top player in the 2024 cycle.
“We have a cool relationship, he’s a caring guy. Cares for his family, cares for the receivers that are in his room. He’s like a father figure to some of the guys.”