Heading into the 2025 season, there may not be a more dominant player in the country than sophomore Jeremiah Smith. At just 19 years old, he’s a freak athlete, a game-breaking wide receiver, and the face of the No. 3 Ohio State Buckeyes.
Yet the college football phenom wasn’t always destined for stardom, as he was once cut from his youth football team. Smith recently shared how that moment fueled his drive and shaped him into the player he is today.
How a Childhood Snub Shaped Jeremiah Smith into an Ohio State Star
Smith is coming off one of the most impressive true freshman seasons in college football history. In 2024, he hauled in 76 catches for 1,315 yards and 15 touchdowns, helping Ohio State capture the national title.
JEREMIAH SMITH IS UNREAL‼️
HE FINDS THE END ZONE AGAIN 🔥 pic.twitter.com/N8J1f9giQF
— ESPN (@espn) January 1, 2025
However, as the Washington Post’s Chuck Culpepper reports, Smith wasn’t always a star. At seven years old, he was cut from his Miami Gardens youth football team and cried all the way home with his father.
Culpepper spoke with Smith about the experience, and the wide receiver revealed that he thinks about that day every single day and credits it with fueling the drive that made him the player he is today.
“He can’t remember anything about arriving home or trying to fall asleep because he was, after all, 7 (but not so far from 8!),” Culpepper wrote. “He can remember that, with his brother playing in the program, he repeatedly went to watch the team practice and felt ‘mad’ and ‘frustrated’ and: ‘Next year, I’m definitely going to be on the team.”‘
It’s wild to think that a player of Smith’s caliber was once cut from his youth team, but that early setback may have been exactly what fueled him to become one of the most dominant players in the country.
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After that experience, Smith went on to have an outstanding high school career at Chaminade-Madonna in Opa Locka, Florida, catching 88 passes for 1,376 yards and 19 touchdowns in his senior season, ultimately becoming the No. 1 overall recruit in the 2024 class.
Now entering his sophomore season at Ohio State, it may be tough for him to match last year’s gaudy numbers, but given the drive he’s carried since being cut at age seven, it wouldn’t be surprising if he comes back even stronger in 2025.
Fans will get their first chance to see Smith in action on Saturday, August 30, when No. 3 Ohio State hosts the No. 1 Texas Longhorns in Columbus at 12:00 p.m. EST, with coverage on Fox.
