Buckeyes' Star Jeremiah Smith Is the Perfect Weapon for a First Time Starter

The Ohio State Buckeyes are going to be starting a brand new quarterback on Saturday night against the USC Trojans in front of a sold-out LA Coliseum. 

This is a daunting place for any quarterback, let alone one getting his first-ever career start. That is where the Buckeyes find themselves as they stare down a must-win game on the road. 

At this point, it is unofficial who will start for Ohio State between Luke Fahey and Tavien St. Clair. Ryan Day said on Tuesday that the Buckeyes might even go with both guys to provide a switch-up in tempo.

No matter who is under center, one thing is for certain: that guy is going to have an absolute cheat code on the outside. Having Jeremiah Smith on the outside is almost unfair for any quarterback because he is just that good.

He proved over the first half of the year that he is by far and away the best player in the country at the wide receiver position. His two game stretch against Illinois and Iowa where he went 23 catches for 423 yards and six touchdowns was the sequence that really made him standout. 

Everyone knew how good he was, but that two game stretch showed that he is simply the best, full stop. For what it is worth, just that two-game stretch would rank 92nd overall in the entire NCAA, among over 1500 Division I wide receivers. 

He is a special talent, and he is going to be used as such this weekend and going forward for the Buckeyes. During that same press conference on Tuesday, Day said that Jeremiah is a special talent, and the good news is that for Luke or whoever is at quarterback, they can just put the ball in his vicinity, and he will likely bring it down.

Usually, when a wide receiver is described with this type of talent, it is with a heavy dose of hyperbole. With Smith, that is not the case. He is that good and he is that type of player that can level set for an offense if it ever gets off track. 

The other part that is important with Smith is that his production is certainly going to change. He is simply not going to be able to have the consistent production that he was having with Sayin at the helm. He will go quiet for a while, but there will be moments when he lights the fuse for the Buckeyes.

Similar to the play that he made against Indiana on 4th down for the big touchdown, he will be available for plays like that when the Buckeyes need him the most.

Smith is obviously the type of player who can change a team. For this version of the Buckeyes, he needs to be ready to be the difference maker when his number is called.