Jeremiah Smith claims 2025 Ohio State wide receiving corps is better than 2024

All teams undergo some amount of turnover in college sports. Ohio State, in particular, lost a lot of key talent following its national championship run, including in the wide receiver room. Despite the loss of that key talent, star wide receiver Jeremiah Smith has returned, and he believes this unit is as good as it’s ever been.

Recently, Smith appeared on The Triple Option. There, he praised the receivers around him, including Carnell Tate and Brandon Inniss. Combined, he explained that he thinks they have made the Ohio State wide receiving corps even better than in 2024.

“Them guys, I feel like they’re going to shock a lot of people,” Smith said. “Especially Carnell. That guy there, he can do anything and everything that you ask him to do. Very smooth route runner, can block, can do it all. Brandon, the same way. He’s got that dog in him.”

Smith has been widely recognized as the best receiver in college football individually. He’s even considered by some to be a Heisman Trophy candidate after having a breakout season as a freshman. However, thanks to the depth of the receiver room, teams can’t solely focus on covering him.

Carnell Tate and Brandon Inniss are both now juniors. In Tate’s career at Ohio State, he’s now played in 30 games. In 2024, he had a breakout season. That saw him make 52 receptions for 733 yards and four touchdowns. For Inniss’ part, he’s played in 24 career games. Last season, he had 14 receptions for 176 yards and a touchdown.

“So, I feel like this year, I mean, our room is very special,” Smith said. “I feel like it’s better than last year because we can all do different things. That’s what I think.”

Ohio State did have a massive loss from its wide receiving room last season. A key weapon on the offense last season, he became a first round pick in the NFL Draft after catching 81 passes for 1,011 yards and 10 touchdowns last season. That’s almost impossible to replace. However, with another year of development, it’s easy to see how the Buckeyes are ready to go in 2025.

That Ohio State receiving corps is going to be vital in helping the Buckeyes handle a transition at quarterback, too. Now taking over under center is Julian Sayin. He lacks experience, so having those trustworthy options is going to help him develop. That’s particularly true given the Buckeyes will be tested right out of the gates by the Texas Longhorns.