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Nick Saban says there’s no question Ohio State can ride Jeremiah Smith to a national title

Paul Harvey

By Paul Harvey

Published:

Nick Saban knows all about engineering deep runs in the College Football Playoff, and he believes Ohio State has the kind of individual mismatch that could power the Buckeyes to a national championship.

That mismatch comes in the form of electric freshman Jeremiah Smith. Though only 19 years of age, Smith is a generational prospect at the position and already an elite playmaker on the biggest stage.

After a dynamic regular season, Smith has elevated his game to another level with Ryan Day and his staff targeting the wide receiver early and often. It has led to 4 touchdowns across 2 Playoff games, including the game-opening scores in matchups against Tennessee and Oregon.

After Smith’s historic Rose Bowl performance, complete with 161 yards before halftime, Nick Saban was asked by Pat McAfee if it’s possible for a team to ride a wide receiver to a title. Saban doesn’t believe there’s any question about it, even referencing former Alabama star Julio Jones who was one of the most unguardable players in Alabama history.

“I don’t think there’s any question about it. When you have a mismatched player like that… when you’re a coach and you know you have a go-to guy and they can’t guard the guy, from a QB standpoint, I mean who makes who better? Does the QB make the receiver better or the receiver make the QB better?” said Saban.

“We had Julio Jones back in 2009 or whatever and he was that kind of player. We had lots of first-round draft pick receivers, but he was the one guy that you knew if you threw him the ball in a critical situation he was going to win, and he was going to make the play, and I think that’s what they’ve got in this guy No. 4.”

In his first 2 Playoff games, Smith has 290 receiving yards and 4 touchdowns, all while averaging over 22 yards per catch. He has ignited Ohio State’s offense and demands extra manpower from opposing defenses, and it will be interesting to see how Texas tries to gameplan for the freshman in the Cotton Bowl.

Paul Harvey

Paul is a lifelong fan and student of all things college football. He has been covering college football since 2017 and the B1G since 2018.