There are some guys that walk into college football and you just know. You know they are different. You know they are not playing for NIL checks or clout or trying to be WR3 for some team that throws 17 times a game. Jeramiah Smith was that from day one. Not just a top recruit. Not just a star. He was the one.
So lets look at what happens next.
Freshman Year at Ohio State 2024
Ohio State came into the year with a new quarterback and a stacked wide receiver room. But Jeramiah was already the best of them. Carnell Tate was solid. Brandon Inniss was consistent. But Smith looked like Marvin Harrison and Garrett Wilson had a baby and fed it nothing but NFL film for breakfast.
Anyways you know what happened last yr
Sophomore Year: The Takeover
Now it’s 2025. Ohio State has a better QB. A more aggressive offense. And Jeramiah is the alpha now. He’s WR1 in the country.
This is the year everything changed.
He posts: 109 catches, 1523 yards, 15 touchdowns
He becomes the first WR to be a Heisman finalist since DeVonta Smith. He doesn’t win it because some QB named Sam Leavitt from Arizona State randomly throws for 5000 yards but Jeramiah finishes third and steals the show at the ceremony. He wears a white suit. Shades indoors. He daps up every finalist like they all his little brothers.
NFL scouts lose their minds. Some GM leaks anonymously that they’d take him No 1 overall even if they needed a QB.
Ohio State makes the playoff that year. They beat Texas in round one behind a 13 catch 179 yard masterclass from Smith. They lose in the natty to Georgia but Jeramiah has 9 for 128 and a touchdown and walks off the field like the real winner.
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Junior Year: The Unfair Season
2026 is Jeramiah’s walk year. He knows it. The world knows it. He doesn’t even try to pretend he might come back.
This is the monster year.
He finishes with: 117 catches, 1744 yards, 19 touchdowns
He wins the Biletnikoff by the largest vote margin in the award’s history. He wins Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year. Breaktshrough and wins the Heisman beating out Jordan Tyson by a small margin.
Ohio State again makes the playoff. This time they win it all. Jeramiah catches the game winner with 31 seconds left against Alabama in the natty. A corner plays off. He still breaks his ankles with a slant and takes it to the crib. 47 yard dagger. Buckeye fans still wear the clip on T-shirts.
And just like that his college career is over. He finishes with: • 308 catches • 4484 yards • 44 touchdowns All Ohio State records. All Big Ten records. And arguably the best college WR run of all time.
NFL Combine
He skips most of the drills. Says his tape is enough. But he runs the forty anyway. And it breaks people.
He runs a 4.31. At 6 foot 3. 214 pounds. And he looks like he gliding not sprinting.
He verticals 41 inches. Broad jumps 11 foot 3. And in interviews he breaks down cornerback technique like he teaching a clinic.
Daniel Jeremiah calls him the best WR prospect since Calvin Johnson. Some say he might even be more ready than Ja’Marr Chase was coming out.
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The Draft
The Saints have the No 2 pick. They ended up taking a QB in Sam Leavitt with there other first rounder. They are stacked with defensive talent but they have no elite WR outside of Chris Olave. They pull the trigger.
Pick 2 – New Orleans Saints – Jeramiah Smith WR Ohio State
The Saints pair him with Leavitt. It becomes a duo for the ages.
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Rookie Season
Jeramiah wastes no time. He catches 81 balls for 1196 yards and 9 touchdowns. He wins NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year. Sam feeds him every redzone look.
Defenses try bracket. They try press. They try soft zones. None of it works. He eats.
Year Two – The Breakout
By year two he’s already top 5 in every WR ranking.
104 catches 1,489 yards 14 touchdowns
He makes his first Pro Bowl. But more importantly he helps the Saints make the playoffs for the first time since 2020. They beat the Packers in Lambeau in a snowy wild card game and Jeramiah goes for 8 and 146.
Year Three through Five
He keeps stacking. Three straight Pro Bowls Two All Pro First Teams One Super Bowl appearance (lost to the Chiefs)
By year five he’s getting compared to Jerry Rice for consistency and Calvin Johnson for dominance.
Years Six through Ten
This is peak Jeramiah.
His six year stats: • 1197 catches • 16,803 yards • 137 touchdowns
He wins two MVPs He wins one Super Bowl He becomes the highest paid WR in league history
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Year Eleven – Injury
In year 11 he tears his ACL. It’s his first major injury. He misses the entire season.
People start whispering maybe he won’t come back the same.
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Year Twelve to Fourteen – Redemption Arc
He returns with less burst. But he becomes the ultimate route technician. Think Larry Fitz with 4.4 speed.
He posts back to back 1000 yard seasons even as a WR2 behind a younger star.
Year Fifteen – Final Season
He announces this is the last ride. The Saints go all in and he makes one last run.
They go 14 and 3. Win the Super Bowl over the Broncos and he wins Super Bowl mvp
He walks off the field with 10 catches for 188 yards 3 TD’s and a standing ovation from everyone.
Final NFL Numbers • 1458 catches • 20,112 yards • 176 touchdowns
GOAT numbers. Flat out.
Legacy
Jeramiah Smith becomes a first ballot Hall of Famer. He’s remembered as one of the greatest ever and ghe GOAT receiver He ends his career with 13 All Pros, 14 Pro Bowls, 3 MVP and 2 Super Bowl rings and 1 Super Bowl mvp
But more than that he’s remembered as the guy who did everything perfect. From high school to college to the league he never missed a step.
He stayed quiet. Let the work talk. And by the end even his haters had to salute.