Jeremiah Smith is locked in with the Ohio State football program. He has made it clear that he is looking forward to next season, which should be his final season with the Buckeyes before he heads to the NFL. Multiple programs have tried to grab him over the years.
Miami fans have tried to convince him to go back home for years. That has not worked at all. Smith is going to play one more season with the Ohio State Buckeyes before moving to the NFL, where he will dominate. He was brought to the Buckeyes by former wide receivers coach Brian Hartline.
Hartline decided to take the head coaching job with USF right before the Big Ten Championship Game. In a recent interview, Hartline revealed that he had conversations with Smith about joining him at USF that didn't last very long.
Brian Hartline talked to Jeremiah Smith about leaving Ohio State
In an interview with Ari Wasserman and Andy Staples of On3, Hartline joked that he and Smith had a quick conversation about joining him in South Florida.
“Yeah, we had a deal worked out. I just decided to tell him that it’s probably better for him to stay at Ohio State rather than coming down here. He was more than welcome to if he wanted to.”
Hartline obviously was never going to take Smith with him. He said everything with a joking tone before giving some true praise for Ohio State and the kind of place it is.
"No, Ohio State's a special place. We know that, guys. It's not just one coach, one player. It is how they operate in totality, and being there absolutely maximized what he's capable of."
Hartline was one of the best recruiters that the Buckeyes have ever had. He was able to bring in multiple five-star recruits almost every recruiting class, and it will be hard for Ohio State to replace him as a wide receivers coach.