Jeremiah Smith becomes first freshman ever named an 'Iron Buckeye'

For the first time ever, a true freshman is an Iron Buckeye. Jeremiah Smith was one of 10 Ohio State players to earn the honor, along with seven other players who have played two or more years.

Smith, TreVeyon Henderson, Emeka Egbuka, Josh Fryar, Donovan Jackson, Lathan Ransom, Ty Hamilton, Sonny Styles, Carson Hinzman and Cody Simon all earned Iron Buckeye status as training camp continues. The honor, according to longtime strength coach Mick Marotti, recognizes “unquestionable training, dedication, determination, discipline, toughness and leadership.”

The hype continues to build around Smith, was the crown jewel of Ohio State’s recruiting class this year. He was a hot topic of conversation at Big Ten Media Days, and Ryan Day declined to discuss expectations for Smith until he took the field for the first time.

𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒 𝐈𝐫𝐨𝐧 𝐁𝐮𝐜𝐤𝐞𝐲𝐞𝐬 💪 pic.twitter.com/pEdbBdlEDo

— Ohio State Football (@OhioStateFB) August 7, 2024

Day literally breathed a sigh of relief on National Signing Day when Smith signed his NLI. A Five Star Plus+ recruit, he 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.

Through spring practice, Smith opened eyes quickly. He was the first freshman to lose his black stripe, and he made quite an impression on his teammates during his first few workouts.

“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,” EDGE Jack Sawyer said at Big Ten Media Days. “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.”

Devin Brown ‘can’t wait’ for Jeremiah Smith to ‘get on the field’

Just this week, Devin Brown spoke about Smith and what led him to earn “Iron Buckeye” status. That recognition speaks to the work he’s put in this year, and it’s adding to the anticipation for the season opener against Akron.

“No matter what anybody says about all this hype and all the talent he has, the dude works hard,” Brown said after Tuesday’s practice. “He works really, really hard. He’s an ‘Iron Buckeye.’ That’s never happened as a freshman. The first true freshman to ever do that. That’s just a testament to who he is as a person and who he is as a player. He’s taken a huge step, even from the winter. So I can’t wait for him to get on the field.”

Day, on the other hand, said he wants to hold off on firing up the hype machine too much. However, he noted the amount of talent Jeremiah Smith brings. He just wants to see how it goes after that first kickoff before getting too far ahead of himself.

“I’m trying not to go down the road too long with him. It’s easy to see how talented he is,” Day told reporters at Big Ten Media Days. “I think the thing you already recognize, though, is that he’s good at the no-talent things, as well. But I’m gonna hold off comments until he plays his first snap at Ohio State and we’ll go from there.”