Jeremiah Smith’s demeanor comparable to 10-year NFL veteran, says Chip Kelly

Jeremiah Smith has proven during his first season as a receiver at Ohio State that he is as good as any player at his position in the country, regardless of age.

Chip Kelly has coached many talented players in his career as both a college and NFL coach. Now that he is the offensive coordinator at Ohio State, he is once again dealing with NFL-caliber talent.

While Smith obviously has the physical traits that a receiver must possess, Kelly said it is maturity that truly separates Smith from his peers.

“I think there’s a maturity to Jeremiah that most freshmen or most people don’t have, especially at that age,” Kelly said. “He’s as serious a football player as I’ve been around. His goal every single day is just to improve and to get better at one facet of the game. I think it’s almost like you’re almost dealing with a 10-year NFL veteran in terms of how he approaches meetings, how he approaches practices. It’s rare.”

Smith’s maturity is something that Kelly thinks has allowed him to handle the individual success throughout the season.

“That’s the first thing I said,” Kelly said. “Obviously when you meet Jeremiah, his physical skills are kind of incomparable for someone at that age, but I think it’s maturity level that has kind of set him apart. Because there’s a lot of guys that could get caught up in that hype… You don’t see that out of him.”

Through the first 7 games of his Ohio State career, he has 35 catches for 623 yards and 8 touchdowns and most recently tied Cris Carter’s freshman record for the Buckeyes. He has scored at least 1 touchdown in every single game he has played, and will be huge in the upcoming game against No. 2 Penn State.

Mark Kern