Jeremiah Smith’s spectacular freshman season has renewed the debate about whether players should have to wait three years to enter the NFL draft. But the former Ohio State star who tried to change that rule two decades ago says there’s “no need” for Smith – or any other college football player – to try to change that rule now.
Twenty-two years before Smith became Ohio State’s biggest star as a true freshman and led Ohio State to a national championship, Maurice Clarett did the same in 2002. Clarett broke Ohio State’s freshman rushing records by running for 1,237 yards and 18 touchdowns and delivered in a huge way in the Buckeyes’ national title game win over Miami. In addition to scoring the game-winning touchdown in double overtime, Clarett made perhaps the greatest hustle play in Ohio State history by stealing the ball out of Sean Taylor’s hands during an interception return by the Miami safety.
Unfortunately for Clarett and the Buckeyes, that would be the final game of his Ohio State career. Clarett was suspended and ultimately dismissed from the team before the 2003 season after accepting improper benefits. He then filed a lawsuit against the NFL, alleging that the requirement for players to be three years out of high school before entering the NFL draft violated federal antitrust laws.
A federal judge initially sided with Clarett, but the decision was overturned after an appeal by the NFL, keeping Clarett out of football for two years before he entered the 2005 NFL draft. His career never recovered, as he never played a snap in the league despite being selected in the third round by the Denver Broncos.
Having gone through the experience of taking the NFL to court and losing that fight, Clarett says Smith or any other college football player would be mistaken to try to challenge the league’s eligibility rules to enter the draft early.
“I would tell him ‘Don’t even waste your time, man,’” Clarett said while participating in the most recent 12th Warrior Happy Hour. “You don't know what you don't know when you're first starting to fight the battle, and you may emotionally want to go and you may think that it's best for you, but I would never wish the fight that I had on any person. I would say, ‘Hey man, enjoy football.’”
Of course, the calculus is much different for today’s college football stars than it was for Clarett. While Clarett became ineligible to play at Ohio State for accepting thousands of dollars in benefits, Smith is making millions of dollars now that college athletes are allowed to profit from their name, image and likeness. Given that the players who would be top draft picks can now take care of themselves and their families financially while still in college, Clarett sees no reason for players to rush their way to the NFL now.
“There’s no need,” Clarett said. “I was poor and I couldn't afford $1,200 for a transmission. That was essentially, like if you talk about what happened, a $1,200 transmission that my family couldn't afford is what really started everything for me in college. So I wouldn't even tell (Smith) to even think about it; if there was anybody even advising it, it's pointless. He can have fun, he can learn, he can grow here. You can get a ton of high-quality reps.”
When Clarett thinks back on his own Ohio State career and how it ended, he says one of his biggest regrets is that he didn’t get to have a full collegiate experience. So he encourages today’s college football players to enjoy their time in college while they can.
“That's probably, if you ask me, just things you regret that didn't happen, I would never be 18-22 again. So I just don't have a total college experience like another kid, just like every kid would have like some sort of high school experience. So you don't think those things mean anything, but as you get older, you wish that you had some of those things,” said Clarett, who now works with the current Ohio State football team as a part-time consultant. “And so all of those things are missed in the process of kids chasing some aspirational dollars or the NFL too early. So I wouldn't advise him to even think about it. I would probably say it's one of the stupidest things that you probably could do.”
Fortunately for Ohio State, Smith has already taken that message to heart. When he was asked at Big Ten Media Days whether he thought players should be allowed to enter the NFL draft sooner than three years out of high school, Smith said he thought they should but that he was in no rush to leave Ohio State, wanting to make the most of his next two years as a Buckeye.
“I can't beat the rule that they have, three years or whatever. But I'm having fun. I'm in college. I'm enjoying life. I’m not in a rush to go to the NFL,” Smith said. “With how college is now, you got NIL, you got all types of stuff, so I don’t think people are really in a rush to go to the NFL. People getting blessed with all types of money, so I don’t think nobody is really in a rush to get to the NFL no more.”
When Ryan Day was asked about the same topic, he said he had no doubt that Smith could play in the NFL right now but that he thinks Smith will benefit from two more years at the collegiate level.
“The rule’s in place for a reason. He's 19 years old, and so there's still a lot of growing that needs to happen and maturity that has to happen,” Day said at Big Ten Media Days. “But yeah, his talent, it's pretty remarkable … at his age, he's further along than anybody I've ever been around.”
In an hourlong conversation with 12th Warrior subscribers, Clarett also discussed many other topics, including:
- The common threads between the 2002 and 2004 national championship teams
- How his perception of Ryan Day changed after he got to know Day
- The differences between Ryan Day and Jim Tressel
- What he sees in Ohio State’s running backs for the upcoming season
- How football has changed since he played
- How Tressel has helped him achieve his goals in his post-football life
- Why Caleb Downs is the most impressive college athlete he’s met
- The three books he thinks everyone should read
- His thoughts on the Michigan scandal
- His forced fumble and game-winning touchdown in the national championship game
- Who would make his Mount Rushmore of Ohio State running backs
- His most cherished memories from his time at Ohio State
To hear what Clarett had to say about all of that and more, become a 12th Warrior today for access to the full conversation with Clarett, the opportunity to participate in future 12W Happy Hours, access to the Premium Lounge forum and a $40 Dry Goods voucher, among other perks.
