Devin Brown on hype surrounding Jeremiah Smith: 'He handles it like a pro'

A big offseason for Ohio State is just about over. The Buckeyes are a few practices into training camp after making some huge moves in the transfer portal and on the recruiting trail, adding to a roster with multiple key returners.

One of those newcomers is standing out above the rest, though. In fact, during Big Ten Media Days, Ryan Day said he didn’t even want to discuss the hype until he took the field for the first time.

Jeremiah Smith opened plenty of eyes during spring ball, and he’s sure to be a focal point of Chip Kelly’s offense this year. He joins a wide receiver room that still includes Emeka Egbuka, Brandon Inniss and Carnell Tate, but could make an instant impact as a freshman.

Through all the hype, though, Devin Brown said Smith is taking it in stride. His focus isn’t on the outside noise. It’s on playing football.

“He handles it like a pro every day,” Brown said of Smith. “There’s really nothing that affects him. He’s just kind of steady on and doesn’t really think about anything else. He just loves to play ball.”

Smith was the crown jewel of Ohio State’s recruiting class this year, and Day literally breathed a sigh of relief on National Signing Day when he signed his NLI. A Five Star Plus+ recruit, Smith was the No. 1 overall player from the 2024 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

The Chaminade-Madonna Prep (Fla.) product was a hot topic of discussion during Big Ten Media Days late last month. While Day wanted to wait until Smith took the field to talk about the expectations around him, Jack Sawyer took a different avenue.

Sawyer recalled his first time facing Smith in practice. His reaction summed up the way everyone is talking about the highly rated freshman.

“Having been in his shoes, meaning being a five-star recruit and having a lot of hype around him coming in, I was like, man, I just want to see him practice a couple of times,” Sawyer said during a breakout session with reporters. “I don’t want him to feel like if he doesn’t play this year or if he doesn’t live up to the hype his freshman year then, you know.

“But then I saw him for the first time at the first practice. I was like, holy sh*t, this kid’s good.”

Jeremiah Smith is also building his brand early in his Ohio State career. He and Caleb Downs starred in a commercial for American Eagle through an NIL deal with the company, facilitated by The Foundation. He currently has an On3 NIL Valuation of $752,000, which ranks fourth on the Buckeyes roster.

Then, on Wednesday, Smith became the first freshman in Buckeyes history to earn an “Iron Buckeye” honor. It’s safe to say, the noise will continue to grow around the star freshman. He’ll have his first chance to show it on the field when Ohio State takes on Akron Aug. 31.