Buckeyes remaining quiet, optimistic on status of Jaxon Smith-Njigba

COLUMBUS — Ohio State hasn’t had any problems without Jaxon Smith-Njigba in the offensive lineup this season.

The Buckeyes have one of the top offenses in the country, regardless of whether the preseason All-American and favorite for the Biletnikoff Award is on the field.

But having Smith-Njigba back for the Noon showdown on Saturday against Iowa would certainly be an added bonus to the Buckeyes potent offense. The folks inside the Woody Hayes Athletic Center knew the idle week and plenty of time off would give Smith-Njigba a chance to be back for the Iowa matchup.

But they aren’t going to say whether their talented pass-catcher will be on the field just yet.

“Coming off of the bye week, we got a lot guys rest, went on the field yesterday and we have a big day on the field today,” Ohio State coach Ryan Day said. “Right now, we’re not going to give any injury updates. But then as we get closer to the end of the week, we’ll have a better idea.”

Smith-Njigba has just four catches for 36 yards this season after suffering a hamstring injury early in the win over Notre Dame. He returned briefly in Week Three against Toledo but hasn’t played since then.

In his absence, Ohio State has leaned on other former five-star prospects to fill in the void. Those playmakers have certainly done that. But inserting Smith-Njigba back into the lineup that already features now-proven weapons such as Marvin Harrison Jr., Julian Fleming and Emeka Egbuka?

The Buckeyes will be even better offensively, believe it or not.

“I think it allows us more depth there, and it takes some stress off of the other guys,” Day said about the idea of getting Smith-Njigba back. “They’ve taken on a lot in these first six games. If, seven weeks ago, you said here’s what’s going to happen, you would have realized that’s a pretty heavy burden for those guys. …. I think they’ve done well and benefitting from that. We all have.

“Getting him back would take some stress off of them. Then we’ll be at full strength.”

The Ohio State offense has worked at what looks like peak capacity for most of the entire season without its best playmaker on the field. Even the thought of Jaxon Smith-Njigba returning Saturday could be terrifying for opposing defenses to prepare for.

So that’s what Ohio State is set on doing. No injury updates from the program, especially on its superstar.