Zach Smith isn't someone to sugarcoat things when it comes to his job, his players, or really, much of anything else. It's why he's such a valuable member of Urban Meyer's Ohio State coaching staff.
That's why it shouldn't really be surprising that Smith, just like the rest of the coaches, expects big things from the guys in the wide receivers room on the outside every time they take the field. Especially if they understand the concepts of route-running, their responsibilities as blockers on the edge and have the playbook memorized.
"Once they understand the offense and defense they just kind of have to go execute and then it's a matter of, it's like anything else. When the bright lights are on, you know it's your time to make a play," Smith said this spring. "Do you make the play?"
Smith joked that there was a "magic potion" he gives the wide receivers and other skill guys to teach them how to make big plays, but their job only goes as far as putting them in position to be successful.
"Once they understand the offense and defense they just kind of have to go execute and then it's a matter of, it's like anything else. When the bright lights are on, you know it's your time to make a play. Do you make the play?"– Zach Smith
"It's really just teaching them how to run a route, teaching them the concept," Smith said.
The Buckeye wide receivers made plenty of plays during Ohio State's three-game post-season run at the first ever College Football Playoff National Championship in 2014, notably Michael Thomas' twisting grab on the edge of the end zone against Alabama from Evan Spencer, Jalin Marshall's countless first down grabs to convert third-and-long and others.
"The coaches have done a great job of putting us at different places on the field to make those plays," Marshall said. "To be able to go into a game not worrying about one player playing one position gives great depth to the offense."
That's Smith's goal — get each of his guys comfortable at any of the wide receiver positions, so he can plug them into the lineup flawlessly if one goes down with an injury or anything else.
"At the end of the day, every wideout has a one-on-one battle at some point in a route, a perimeter run, whatever it is, they have a one-on-one, they gotta win the one-on-one," Smith said.
After that, it's just about making a play on the ball and using the talents they've worked so hard to perfect.
"If you can't do it in practice when you know it's coming and the spotlight's on, you aren't going to do it in the National Championship Game or the Big Ten Championship Game. You gotta see it there first," Smith said. "So really it's just the opportunity, giving them an opportunity. Trying to see them shine. You do that and you start to become more consistent and then all of a sudden you feel like they're ready to go out in primetime and go do it."
So basically, if you're not a guy who could potentially take it to the house every time you touch the ball in an important game — and they're all important games at Ohio State — don't expect to hear your number called. It's that simple.
"Certainly they have to be coached how to do it and understand when it's their time to shine, but once that's done, you gotta see them do it," Smith said. "Put them in the situation and let them sink or swim."
