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Will Howard shares early praise for Jeremiah Smith: He’s ‘a freakshow’
By Paul Harvey
Published:
Will Howard cannot wait to get on the field with 5-star freshman Jeremiah Smith, but he’s already been blown away by Smith’s talent.
During Howard’s first media appearance at Ohio State, he was asked about his impression of Smith. The new quarterback admitted the elite freshman wide receiver is “a dude” and said Smith’s a “freakshow” in the weight room.
“He’s a dude, man. I haven’t got to talk to him that much yet just because we’ve been in different groups lifting and stuff. But man, he’s a specimen,” explained Howard. “I mean that dude is a freakshow when it comes to physical. I’m excited to see him out on the field in live action.”
That type of review is certainly expected for a player who arrived with the type of fanfare Smith did. Still, it’s a positive sign for the Buckeyes that the highly-touted freshman is impressing a veteran quarterback such as Howard.
Jeremiah Smith’s early outlook
While it remains likely Smith will step into an immediate role with the offense, he is just one piece of a once again extremely deep and supremely talented receiver room for the Buckeyes. That room has especially jumped out to Howard.
The former Kansas State QB made sure to say he has nothing but love for his old teammates but admitted the talent level in Columbus is something else entirely:
“The talent here is unbelievable… The thing that’s impressed me the most about the receiver room is how driven they are and how much they want to work,” said Howard. “I don’t have to beg these guys to go out and go catch. They’re already out here catching on the jugs when I go out to throw. They’re incredibly hard-working, just all across the room.”
Smith is now a part of that group, and the Buckeyes will be looking for some new contributors in 2024 with Marvin Harrison Jr. off to the NFL Draft and Julian Fleming transferring. Emeka Egbuka is back as the veteran of the room, and Carnell Tate appears poised for a breakout in 2024.
That leaves a group of Brandon Inniss, Smith and other youngsters to fight for playing time heading into spring camp. Either way, Howard and the rest of the quarterbacks will not be short on weapons in the fall.
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.