Overview

• Ryan Day publicly calls Smith the best offensive player in college football as the program leans into an overt Heisman campaign, including social captions like “4 for Heisman.”
• Through five games, Smith has 35 catches for 463 yards and six touchdowns, with roughly 44 targets that outpace any teammate as Ohio State works to build his counting stats.
• Opponents are rolling extra coverage to Smith, which he says is frustrating, but the attention has freed weapons like Carnell Tate, who posted 183 yards and a score against Minnesota.
• Quarterback Julian Sayin is emerging as a parallel candidate after Ohio State opened the passing game, including a 326-yard, three-touchdown outing and an 80% completion rate noted in recent analysis.
• Betting markets place Smith among the leaders with the fourth-best DraftKings odds entering Week 7, as his profile grows off the field with an On3 NIL valuation reported around $4.2 million and increased public recognition.