College Football Athlete Who Turned Heads as Freshman, Earns LeBron James Comparison From Head Coach

There haven’t been many generational talents in college football. Yes, every team thinks they have had one. The tag gets attributed rather easily these days. But there are still names that you mention, and it’s not a debate. Ohio State’s WR1 Jeremiah Smith has been on that trajectory right from the moment he set foot on the field for the Buckeyes. It also helps when you become the first option on a championship team. A team that had Emeka Egbuka in the WR room, who’s currently lighting it up in the pros. However, for Ryan Day, Smith’s comparison isn’t with other such talents in CFB. It’s with Ohio’s very own generational talent, LeBron James.

The younger fans may not remember the hype surrounding LeBron’s high school games. The Akron, Ohio, native was drawing celebrities who were lining up to watch a 15-year-old. Sports Illustrated hailed him as the next big thing before he was even picked in the NBA. You just had to be there. Of course, football is a totally different sport, but we’ve had such personalities who just took over the discourse. Johnny Manziel’s run at Texas A&M is a particular case in point.

In Jeremiah Smith’s case, the hype is built on consistency. Just last week, he grabbed seven catches for 67 yards with two TDs. Despite defenses constantly pressuring him, that level of accuracy shows how resilient he is. Last season, he had 1,315 receiving yards and 15 receiving TDs. For Ryan Day, there’s no other similar player than the King himself.

“I just say LeBron? Because I don’t know how to compare him. He’s just so big, strong, and powerful. But then the thing that makes him remarkable is his work ethic, his motivation. You don’t have to tell him to go hard. That’s just the way he’s wired.”

Even though that comparison might sound far-fetched, Jeremiah Smith caught a team-leading 463 yards on 35 receptions with six touchdowns through five games. On top of that, Smith’s fear is clearly visible to other teams. In contrast with Minnesota, five players came right towards him, leaving a free space for Carnell Tate. What was the result? He was left free to catch a pass. Even Smith couldn’t stop himself from reacting to it: “When that happened, I saw all of them run at me, I just started laughing in their face, and I just threw my hand up ’cause I knew it was a touchdown.”

Apart from the skill set, the approach makes him stand apart. Day continued with his praise, “And then there’s just his approach, and it’s just such a great example for all the rest of the guys in the team. Here’s one of the most talented guys any of us has ever been around. But he is one of the hardest workers. And it’s just good for the culture of the team.”

Even Quinn Ewers made the same comparison last year, talking about how explosive Smith is coming out of high school and how he made an instant impact as a freshman. “I don’t want this to sound like an overstatement, talking about Jeremiah Smith,” Quinn said. “I had the chance to go watch him play at Chaminade Madonna. And it really reminded me of another guy in my class coming out of high school: LeBron James. That’s how dominant he was. That’s how he is, so many years ahead of most young men at this age.”

But he is not the only guy turning heads this season; even Caleb Downs is adding to the team’s success. Their defense is no. 1 in the country, and Downs’s performance puts the stamp of proof on it.

Ryan Day showers praise on Caleb Downs with Illinois in his mind

Caleb Downs is one of the reasons opposing offenses could only score two touchdowns against Ohio State in 5 games and could only enter the red zone just eight times this season. And Ryan Day knows he’s built differently. “He’s different than Jeremiah in certain areas, but being a safety, the communication that he has back there. He makes everybody play faster with more confidence because he’s somebody who’s already blessed as he is.” But now with that, Ryan Day’s also predicting their game against Illinois.

Ryan Day’s team will face Illinois this week, but he already knows the game’s outcome as he doesn’t expect them to be that strong against them. “To me, this is like a top-10 matchup,” Day said. “I know that they had that game against Indiana, but throw that game out because it was just one of those days. When you look at what they’ve done, who they’ve beaten, and what Bret (Bielema) has done since he’s been at Illinois, this is a very, very good team. This is a bigger challenge going on the road.”

The confidence makes sense, as Ohio State already recorded nine wins against Illinois, but they have not met since 2017. So, this team might shock them this week. But how? Look, Ohio State is sure dominating on both sides of the ball, but let’s not forget about their slow start against Texas and Washington.

Unlike other teams, Illinois quarterback Luke Altmyer is one of the strongest quarterbacks they faced this season. So, it all comes down to their defense now. Let’s wait and see how this game turns out for them.