It was the Jeremiah Smith show on Saturday afternoon as the Buckeyes cruised to a 42-19 victory over the Illinois Fighting Illini.
For the very first time in his career, Ohio State's Jeremiah Smith was made the focal point of the entire gameplan and the result was his best game ever.
Smith was everything that we knew he could be on Saturday afternoon. On 90 percent of his routes, he ended up being wide open, and on the 10 percent that he was covered, he made a spectacular catch. It was downright laughable what he was able to do against Illinois on Saturday, and it was so much fun to watch.
Smith ended the day by hauling in 12 catches for 217 yards and a total of four touchdowns. It was said in jest on the pregame show that he might set the record for career touchdowns today, but he almost made it a reality.
Smith is such a special talent because there isn't anything that he cannot do. He is faster than the fastest guy, quicker than the quickest defender, stronger than the strongest defender, and better than the best defender.
He is a special player and one that Buckeye fans need to take in for the remainder of the time we have to watch him. Saturday against Illinois was his first real submission to win the Heisman Trophy, and he will continue to improve upon that as the season goes on.
As for the rest of the Buckeyes, Julian Sayin was sharp today. Throwing to Jeremiah Smith makes it look really easy to play quarterback, but he was sharp outside of that. He finished the football game 27-36 for 367 yards and four touchdowns. He also ran the ball seven times for 29 yards and found the end zone once.
The rest of the backfield was solid. The Jackson duo of Ja'Kobi and Bo split the carries nearly right down the center, with 10 and 11 carries, respectively, and Ja'Kobi found the end zone once.
The negative, however, was the defense. Ohio State's defense gave up a total of 441 yards while only surrendering 19 points on the afternoon. Illinois was able to run and throw it down the field, and the Buckeyes put up hardly any fight. There will be things to correct on that side of the football.
With that said, they only gave up 19 points, and when you have a one-of-one talent in Smith on the other side, 19 points is going to be more than enough.
It was an incredible performance for Smith. The Buckeyes roll to a nice 42-19 victory over the Illinois Fighting Illini. The Iowa Hawkeyes are up next for the Buckeyes as their tough Big Ten schedule continues.
