Ohio State got an official commitment from the top-ranked player in the country Wednesday.
Rivals.com five-star wide receiver Jeremiah Smith stood by his verbal commitment to the Buckeyes and announced that he was going to sign with Ohio State midday Wednesday. It was the first day that high school recruits could sign letters of intent with their college choices.
Smith didn’t sign his letter of intent for hours, however. But Wednesday evening, Ohio State announced that he was officially part of its recruiting class.
Smith, a Florida native, has been verbally committed to Ohio State since December of 2022 but other schools were hoping they could get him to change his mind ahead of the early signing period. Now that his choice of schools is official, he looks to join an esteemed list of Buckeyes wide receivers who have been stars in recent years. After Chris Olave, Garrett Wilson and Jaxon Smith-Njigba became immediate contributors after they were first-round NFL Draft picks, Heisman finalist Marvin Harrison Jr. is widely expected to be a top-five pick in the 2024 NFL Draft if and when he declares.
Smith’s announcement also comes as Ohio State lost a four-star wide receiver earlier in the day. Jeremiah McClellan, the No. 36 prospect in the country, announced Wednesday morning that he was committing to Oregon. The St. Louis native had been verbally committed to Ohio State for the past four months.
The 2023 early signing period seems especially important for Ohio State as the Buckeyes look to usurp Michigan atop the Big Ten. Michigan has won the last three Big Ten titles thanks to wins over Ohio State in the final week of the regular season.
At the moment, Ohio State has the No. 3 recruiting class in the country according to Rivals and Smith is one of three five-star recruits along with QB Air Noland and DE Eddrick Houston. Noland signed with Ohio State early in the day on Wednesday while Houston made his announcement not long after Smith’s. Houston had been heavily pursued by Alabama.
