College football: Ohio State's Jeremiah Smith happy with decision, but still thinks of hometown Miami

ARLINGTON, Texas — Chaminade-Madonna High star Jeremiah Smith had a massive decision in front of him. Would he stick with his long-time commitment to Ohio State or flip to Miami at the last second? The Buckeyes produced NFL receiver after NFL receiver, and they were constantly in the national title hunt. Miami was coming off a 7-5 regular season and had not competed for a championship in two decades, but coach Mario Cristobal was recruiting Smith hard, and the chance to stay home was alluring. Before he made his final call, he had to take a midterm test. "Miami was really close," Smith said at his team's Cotton Bowl media day. "That night, I had some thoughts about it. Then I woke up in the morning. I really had some really good thoughts about it. After I took my midterm exam, called my agent, called my dad, and just thinking about staying home. (I) had some … tough conversations with my dad, uncle, agent." Smith ultimately stuck with the Buckeyes. The move has paid off. The wide receiver is widely considered the best player in the nation at any position. He is poised to be a top pick in the 2027 NFL Draft, and he capped off a dominant freshman season last year with a touchdown in the national title game, helping the Buckeyes win their ninth championship. Still, there is a lingering "What if?" Would Miami be the favorite over Ohio State in Wednesday's Cotton Bowl — which doubles as a College Football Playoff quarterfinal — if they had swayed Smith in 2023? "I think about it sometimes," Smith said. "A lot of people say that to me, that you probably were the missing piece of that team, probably the biggest miss in Coach Cristobal's recruiting history. But I'm just happy to be here. I mean, Miami's going to still be Miami at the end of the day." Ohio State coach Ryan Day won that recruiting battle against Cristobal and the Hurricanes. It was a crucial win on the trail. Smith, who was second in the Biletnikoff Award voting this year, has accrued 2,401 yards and 26 touchdown catches over two seasons. "From the minute he stepped into our building to where he is right now, he's got a great spirit about him," Day said. "He does. And he knows what he wants. Hates to lose, highly competitive. He's the type of guy that you just love to be around every day. He's a great teammate. Obviously, a great player. You see what's on the field. But it's the other parts that people don't see about him. He's very private and very disciplined in his approach. He knows —I think, anyways — sort of what a star he's become. And so he's done a very good job of creating discipline in his life and being organized and where he goes and what he does. Very thoughtful about all those things. "But he's just the kind of guy you want your children around, you want your teammates around. He's a really impressive young man. And just watch him work and practice every day. When you have your best players who work that hard in practice, boy, as a coach, it's like a dream come true. And that's the way it is with Jeremiah. And I know, he's excited about playing in this game. He's excited about playing every game. That's just the way he is." Smith still has many ties to the Hurricanes. He is friends with people on the team, and he said wide receiver Jojo Trader is one of his closest friends. "He been through a lot," Smith said. "Had to stay at my house, stuff like that, family things like that. But Jojo, that's like a brother to me. He's like a little blood brother to me." Smith said he has encouraged Trader, who was also a star receiver at Chaminade-Madonna, to stay the course even as Trader has played sparingly his first two seasons at Miami. "He always uplifts me in a lot of ways," said Trader, who has 17 catches for 259 yards and two scores in two seasons. "I just told him just keep your head down," Smith said. "Just keep working. God got you. And just focus on the main thing … just getting better each and every day, going out there and putting your best foot forward. So I'm happy for him right now. He's playing a lot more, so I'm happy for him. Hopefully, he makes some plays, but hopefully ain't no big plays against us."