Ohio State football player Jeremiah Smith named to Maxwell Award watchlist

Ohio State's Jeremiah Smith is easily the best player in college football, and in 2025, he'll have the chance to take home some hardware to prove it. Smith was named to the Maxwell Award's preseason watchlist on Monday. The Maxwell Award is a player of the year award voted on by sports writers, broadcasters, and coaches.

Four Buckeyes have won the Maxwell Award in the past. Howard 'Hopalong' Cassidy in 1955, Bob Ferguson in 1961, Archie Griffin in 1975, and Eddie George in 1995. Hopalong Cassidy, Archie Griffin, and Eddie George also won the Heisman Trophy (1954, 1974, 1975, and 1995) while Bob Ferguson was a Heisman runner-up (1961).

Jeremiah Smith would have to exceed his fantastic freshman season, and that will be a tall order, even for him. Smith had 76 catches for 1,315 yards and 16 total touchdowns last season. He also led Ohio State to a national championship. He'll need to lead the Buckeyes back to the postseason and put up even better numbers to be considered for national player of the year accolades like the Maxwell Award and the Heisman Trophy.

With teams willing to triple team him, and with a new quarterback making their first collegiate start, Smith would be even more impressive to just equal last year, let alone go above and beyond it. If Julian Sayin or Lincoln Kienholz can do reasonable impressions of Will Howard (or better) expect Jeremiah Smith and Ohio State to be taking home even more trophies this fall.

Whether it ends up being him making touchdown catches or teammates like Brandon Iniss, Carnell Tate, or Max Klare, Smith, Ohio State, and Buckeye Nation will be happiest if they bring home the biggest trophy like they did in January in the 2024 season. The national championship trophy beats all the other college football trophies combined.