Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith hasn’t just met the hype so far during his college career. He shattered it.
Entering his junior season in Columbus, the 6-foot-3, 223-pound wideout has established himself as the premier offensive weapon in the country and the presumed top target for the 2027 NFL Draft.
Why NFL Draft Analyst Ian Cummings Has Massive Expectations for Jeremiah Smith
Smith torched Big Ten secondaries for 1,243 yards and 12 touchdowns on 87 receptions in 2025, leading the Buckeyes to a 12-2 record.
His combination of size, speed, and suddenness makes him a nightmare matchup for opposing defensive backs. Scouts are already drooling over his next-level potential, with evaluators placing him in rarefied air.
That includes PFSN draft analyst Ian Cummings, who was asked on a recent episode of “Football Debate Club,” who his current 2027 top prospect is. Cummings didn’t shy away from the historical comparisons when asked who his early top 2027 NFL Draft prospect is.
“That’s probably not a surprise, but Jeremiah Smith, obviously,” Cummings said. “Look, he is the wide receiver of old that we’ve seen in the 2000s, right? The old 6’3″, 220-plus, physical phenom, right? And that is the prime selling point, that he’s got the athleticism, size, the length.”
Cummings noted that Smith’s game extends far beyond raw physical dominance. Modern college football requires receivers to process coverages on the fly, and Smith excels in those mental reps.
“I think he’s a very nuanced route runner for his size too,” Cummings continued. “I think he’s a naturally manipulative route runner who understands how to ordain actions from defensive backs and capitalize on so really fun player.”
Then came the ultimate praise from the veteran analyst, setting the stage for an intense evaluation cycle over the next year.
“You know, you’ve heard the hype that he’s a potential generational, I won’t go that far but I will say, he has a chance to be my highest grade receiver prospect, ever,” Cummings said.
The analytics back up the film study. According to PFSN’s CFB WR Impact Metric, Smith dominated the landscape during his sophomore campaign. The proprietary metric weighs game-changing plays, route separation, and performance in high-leverage situations.
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Smith finished the 2025 season as the No. 1-ranked wide receiver in the nation with an elite WRi score of 85.1 and a B grade. He is producing at an unparalleled level on a snap-by-snap basis, distancing himself from the rest of the 2027 draft class.
He will enter the 2026 college football season as the undisputed alpha in the sport. Defenses know the ball is coming his way, yet no coordinator has figured out how to slow him down. Barring injury, Smith is on a collision course with the top five of the 2027 NFL Draft.
