Ohio State thought it might be without both of its two stars at wide receiver on Saturday, but the Buckeyes only ended up being down one.
Carnell Tate was ruled out for Saturday night’s game vs. UCLA and did not play against the Bruins after also missing last week’s game against Purdue. Jeremiah Smith was listed as questionable on Ohio State’s pregame injury report, but ultimately started the game.
Smith made a one-handed catch on Ohio State’s opening drive.
JEREMIAH SMITH ONLY NEEDS ONE HAND
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 16, 2025
:NBC@OhioStateFB pic.twitter.com/NPs9bCm7s2
However, Smith left the game after three drives and was limping after his exit from the game.
Jeremiah Smith appears to be limping while walking off the field at half time
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) November 16, 2025
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Tate was not listed on Ohio State’s pregame status report for the Purdue game, but was held out of the game for precautionary reasons after experiencing lower-leg tightness during warmups. Day said after that game that Tate “probably” could have played, but the Buckeyes “wanted to be really careful.”
| OSU STATUS REPORT FOR UCLA |
|---|
| Questionable |
|
RB CJ Donaldson WR Jeremiah Smith |
| Out |
|
DT Jarquez Carter DE Logan George S Malik Hartford WR De'zie Jones QB Mason Maggs DT Eric Mensah OG Joshua Padilla DT Maxwell Roy WR Carnell Tate DT Ahmed Tounkara |
It’s unclear when Smith suffered his injury, as he played the entire game against Purdue and caught a career-high 10 passes for 137 yards and a touchdown.
Day indicated that Smith’s injury wasn’t serious, telling reporters after the game “was just having a bit of a nagging issue.”
“We just wanted to make sure that we were being really smart with him as we know what's coming down the road here,” Day said.
Day said he was not concerned about either of Smith or Tate’s injuries being long-term issues.
With Tate sidelined and Smith out of the game early, Brandon Inniss, Bryson Rodgers, Mylan Graham and Quincy Porter all saw increased playing time at wide receiver against UCLA. None of them had over 180 receiving yards this season entering the game, but Rodgers scored his first career touchdown in the second quarter while Inniss had a career-high six catches as Ohio State beat UCLA, 48-10.
Other notable players on Ohio State’s injury report for Saturday night included rotational guard Joshua Padilla, who’s out for the second game in a row with an injury he suffered against Penn State, and running back CJ Donaldson, who did not play after being listed as questionable.
Starting right tackle Phillip Daniels and defensive tackle Tywone Malone Jr. were not listed on the pregame status report and both returned to the starting lineup against UCLA after missing the Purdue game.
