The junior wideout needed only 34 career games to pass Chris Olave for touchdowns and Emeka Egbuka, whom he also passed for career receptions on Saturday
Page S3From§Eachthe wee small hours edition — 4 October 2026
Jeremiah Smith declares himself the best player in the country; the record book agrees, 34 games early.
Hot Mic Moment
Somebody get this to the political desk, this reporter is begging. The NCAA's interim name, image and likeness policy took effect July 1, 2021, so a player could finally sell his own name. The sportsbooks found a way to sell it first and kept the house's cut.
Gushis side
Jeremiah Smith, the tight end anchoring Ohio State's offense, stood in front of a television camera after Saturday's rout and said, plainly, that he is the best player in the country.
The claim landed the same weekend Smith passed two names in Ohio State lore this reporter has long admired, breaking the Buckeyes' all-time marks set by Troy Smith and David Boston, done and dusted in just 34 career games.
That pace traces straight back to the Illinois game, where this reporter recalls Smith hanging six touchdowns on the Fighting Illini to light the whole thing up.
Ohio State's own NFL alumni took notice too. Jaxon Smith-Njigba went out this week and called Smith the LeBron James of all-time Buckeyes, full stop, no hedge.
Vegas had already caught up before Smith ever opened his mouth Saturday, naming him the favorite entering Week 6 off that Illinois showing.
By the time the cameras cut away, the betting houses had already turned a junior's press conference into inventory — a name on a board, a line to shop, a season-long product moving without him ever signing a thing in the sportsbook's own ledger.
Trudyher side
He plays wide receiver, not tight end — the New York Post ran the quote Saturday: "I'm the best player in the country," straight from the man himself.
Wrong names entirely. CBS Sports had it Saturday: Smith passed Chris Olave for Ohio State's career touchdown record and Emeka Egbuka for the receptions record, both in 34 games.
Four touchdowns, 217 yards — Fox News had the box score September 26, tying Ohio State's own single-game touchdown record, not setting a new one.
There's a hedge, sugar — CBS Sports quoted Smith-Njigba Wednesday saying Smith is "like the LeBron James" of all-time Buckeyes. A comparison, not a coronation.
Week 5, not six. CBS Sports posted the new odds September 28, two days after that Illinois game Fox News clocked at four touchdowns and 217 yards.
That's a manifesto, not a column, go lie down before standards and practices calls. You happen to be right: Ohio's casino commission did ban proposition bets on individual college athletes in 2023, and the NCAA's interim name, image and likeness policy did take effect July 1, 2021.
“This kid breaks two school records in 34 games and tells the world he's the best, and the paperwork backs him up. The sportsbooks turned his name into a whole menu of Heisman bets before the ink dried on his stat sheet, and none of that money runs back through his hands. That's the con: the record belongs to him, the betting handle doesn't.”
“The free market rewarded him with a Heisman favorite tag and a mountain of attention, which is basically the same as money — did I just say attention is basically money, that's not landing the way I meant it to. These kids knew the deal when they signed up, the system worked fine for decades before anybody started complaining about a betting handle — fine for who, let me get back to you on that.”
The receipts
Ohio State receiver Jeremiah Smith made a bold proclamation about himself on Saturday.
· 2026 Heisman Trophy odds update post-Week 4: Ton of movement, led by new favorite Jeremiah Smith of Ohio State from the morgue, 28 Sep 2026
· Ohio State's Jeremiah Smith is now the Heisman favorite following historic performance from the morgue, 26 Sep 2026
· Seattle WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba says Ohio State's Jeremiah Smith is 'like the LeBron James' of all-time Buckeyes from the morgue, 30 Sep 2026
This page is a back-issue: the story as it ran, receipts as they were. The current edition is at the front. The byline is a pen name for a column drafted by a machine and checked by the editor: how this is made.