Ohio State football, despite losing to Oregon this past weekend, is still a top-ten team in the country.
The Buckeyes have just one loss through the first half of the season, and they have ample time and opportunity to prove themselves as well since Michigan, Indiana, and Penn State are all on the horizon and sit as top-25 teams.
That said, through the first couple of months, the college football landscape has seen a few stars rise. ESPN recently released a top-25 ranking of the best college football players, and Bill Connelly wrote on the lone Buckeye, Jeremiah Smith, to crack the list.
Smith came in at No. 11.
“It is almost impossible to live up to the hype that Jeremiah Smith received heading into his first collegiate season. We heard plenty of, ‘He might already be Ohio State’s best receiver!’ rumbles in the spring about Smith, the No. 4 overall prospect in the 2024 class. And while spring buzz seems like it’s wrong about 98% of the time, damned if it wasn’t almost underselling Smith’s capabilities. Through six games, Smith has caught 32 passes for 553 yards and seven touchdowns; through the first six games of 2023, Marvin Harrison Jr. had 31 catches for 604 yards and five scores. Ohio State lost the No. 4 pick in the 2024 NFL draft, and a freshman is matching his production. That’s not supposed to happen,” Connelly wrote.
Atop the list is Boise State running back, Ashton Jeanty, who has 17 touchdowns on the season. He was preseason ranked No. 25, so Jeanty has certainly blossomed this season.
Dillon Gabriel, Oregon’s quarterback, along with Derrick Harmon, an Oregon defensive lineman, are the only players in the Big Ten to crack the top ten. Gabriel came in at No. 5 with Harmon at No. 10.
One could argue that fans should see a few more Buckeyes, most notably Quinshon Judkins or Caleb Downs, both of which have played well this season. However, Smith has been at another level above those two and certainly deserves the spot he has.