Welcome to the Skull Session.
Cold Talks are back!
— Ohio State Football (@OhioStateFB) August 5, 2025
Ohio State All-Time Mt. Rushmore pic.twitter.com/lnyafnK3Nj
Have a good Wednesday.
“HE’S A FREAK OF NATURE.” Ohio State opponents have praised Jeremiah Smith all summer — Curt Cignetti, Sherrone Moore and Steve Sarkisian among them. We can now add Texas defensive back Michael Taaffe to the list. (We could have added him to the list in July, but I didn’t see his comments until now, so I’m adding him now!)
“Man, what he does on that football field, it doesn’t seem like a real human’s doing that because he’s just so unique, he’s inspirational and (he has) all the talent. He’s still only 19 years old,” Taaffe said at SEC Media Days. “It’s gonna be really fun going against him because he’s a freak of nature. I’ve watched a lot of his routes — almost all of them, dang near, from last year. Seeing how he gets in and out of routes, seeing how he runs full speed, seeing how he stacks DBs, and one of the best things about him, one of his attributes, is going up and getting the football. You can put three DBs on him, but if you put it up in the air, he’s gonna go get it, which is really cool.”
No Bulletin Board Material here. Texas safety Michael Taaffe with very high praise for Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith. pic.twitter.com/9pF1PKy2iG
— BuckeyeHuddle.com (@BuckeyeHuddle) August 5, 2025
That wasn’t the first time Taaffe complimented Smith.
Before Ohio State faced Texas in the Cotton Bowl, Taaffe told Eleven Warriors that Smith already looked like an NFL wide receiver as a freshman in college.
“Everything that he offers is incredible. He’s a guy that looks like he’s NFL-ready already on tape,” Taaffe said. “He’s going up and getting the ball over two, three defenders. I think they’ve got a lot of trust in him.”
He added, “I don’t think you can compare anybody to Jeremiah. The whole country knows what type of talent he has, what type of football player he is. I think he’s only getting better.”
Smith had his worst performance of 2024 against Texas, as the Longhorns employed bracket coverage to limit the star receiver to one catch for 3 yards. Smith said his individual performance in the CFP semifinal has made him extra motivated for the 2025 season opener.
“I’m definitely hyped about this one, especially with how things went last year — things people saying about me, about that game I had last year,” Smith said. “I’m definitely hungry for this one.”
ALL HAIL KING JULIAN! This week, ESPN’s Bill Connelly ranked the most important college football players in 2025. After an offseason of reading how incredible Smith and Caleb Downs are, I expected to see them appear at No. 1 and No. 2 on the list. However, the first Buckeye to appear was Julian Sayin at No. 6, with Smith and Downs checking in at No. 24 and No. 25.
Here’s a look at Connelly’s list:
No. 1 Texas quarterback Arch Manning, No. 2 Georgia quarterback Gunnar Stockton, No. 3 Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson, No. 4 Notre Dame quarterback CJ Carr and No. 5 Oregon quarterback Dante Moore...
No. 6 - Julian Sayin
He has completed five career passes, all in fourth-quarter garbage time, and now he likely takes the reins for the defending national champ and a team that has ranked worse than seventh in offensive SP+ just once in eight years. There's massive pressure that comes with that, and at some point Sayin will have to make some big third-down passes. But he'll be throwing to the best receiver duo in the sport (Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate). That will help.
No. 7 Penn State quarterback Drew Allar, No. 8 Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik, No. 9 LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier, No. 10 Miami quarterback Carson Beck, No. 11 South Carolina quarterback LaNorris Sellers, No. 12 Florida quarterback DJ Lagway, No. 13 Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer, No. 14 Texas A&M quarterback Marcel Reed and No. 15 Ole Miss quarterback Austin Simmons...
Behold, here comes a non-quarterback!
No. 16 Clemson’s top three wide receivers, No. 17 Penn State defensive tackle Dani Dennis-Sutton, No. 18 LSU linebacker Harold Perkins Jr., No. 19 Oregon running back Makhi Hughes, Georgia wide receiver Zachariah Branch, No. 21 Oregon safety Dillon Thieneman, No. 22 Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia and No. 23 Georgia Tech quarterback Haynes King...
No. 24 - Jeremiah Smith, No. 25 Caleb Downs
It was going to be almost impossible for Smith, a Hollywood, Florida, product, to live up to his recruiting hype. He did so almost immediately. He topped 80 receiving yards in 10 games and hit triple digits in five, including an all-time, 187-yard, two-touchdown performance against Oregon in the CFP quarterfinal (and his first Rose Bowl trip). Smith and Carnell Tate will give Julian Sayin the ultimate security blanket.
Meanwhile, though it was hard to be inspired by Ryan Day's decision to replace outgoing defensive coordinator Jim Knowles with former Bill Belichick protégé Matt Patricia — last truly strong performance as a coach: 2016; last year coaching in college: 2003 — Downs will give the Buckeyes basically a second coordinator on the field. He's an almost perfect safety. He made 12 tackles at or near the line of scrimmage last season, delivered pressure on 31% of his pass rushes and gave up a 29% completion rate and 0.7 QBR when paired up in coverage. Ohio State faces a huge challenge, attempting to repeat as champ with a new starting QB and two new coordinators. But the Buckeyes could have the two best players in the sport. And that could be enough.
It could be enough.
But will it be enough?
I sure hope so!
THE BEST OF THE BEST. I believe Denzel Burke is the best cornerback in the National Football League. Yes, I am a Cleveland Browns fan, and therefore biased, but even if I didn’t root for the most miserable franchise in professional sports, I’d have the same opinion.
I think Browns defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz would, too.
“The way he goes about doing his thing is just impressive to see up close,” Schwartz told reporters this week. “I knew some guys that have coached him in the past, and they’d say things like, ‘You’re going to love Denzel,’ and I certainly do.”
Then, he took it a step further.
“He’s probably the best corner I’ve had in 30 years in the NFL,” Schwartz said.
Finding a weakness in Ward’s game is difficult. (I only know of one: that his brain really doesn’t like blunt-force trauma, as Ward has been diagnosed with five concussions in his football career, forcing him to miss nine NFL games in seven seasons.)
Ward’s strengths, on the other hand, are numerous. He has elite physical attributes. He has sharp instincts. He excels in man coverage, displaying exceptional footwork and mirroring capabilities. He is a strong tackler…
It’s just — Ward really is all that and a bag of chips, you know?
Schwartz agrees.
“The thing I like about Denzel is just how consistent he is with his preparation,” Schwartz said. “He never phones in a performance. He’s making a big effort this year to be more physical, put hands on, because he’s such a great shadow guy, and he’s working a little bit more now on being a little more physical at the line of scrimmage, giving us a little bit more run support and just sort of rounding out some other parts of the game.”
Ward’s teammates Greg Newsome II and Martin Emerson also agree.
“His name is Denzel Ward and nobody else’s is,” Newsome said. “There’s no secret. He’s the best cornerback in the league, so we expect him to do that. Like I say, he doesn’t have a weakness. There’s really no secret sauce. It’s just his name is Denzel Ward and nobody else’s is.”
“He’s the best corner in the game easily,” Emerson said. “Just the plays he makes and how he comes out of his breaks, just a lot of things. You can’t really teach what he’s got, honestly.”
I believe in Ward, Schwartz believes in Ward, Newsome and Emerson believe in Ward, but most importantly, Ward believes in Ward.
“I’m definitely a Defensive Player of the Year caliber player,” he told reporters last month. “And I just take things a day at a time. Rewards and all that stuff, that’ll come down the road whenever. But my focus is just to be the best I can each day.”
THAT’S WHY HE’S THE GOAT! I have thoughts on Tradition Evolved, and I get into them with George Eisner on the Eleven Dubcast.
For now, however, I will share one thought and one thought only. No, it’s not about THE Towel, the soundtrack or any of that. It’s this: I love how much Ohio State has honored Archie Griffin recently. From his spring game touchdown to him dotting the ‘i’ and being named the first Victory Bell Ringer, over the past three years, the Buckeyes have put college football’s only two-time Heisman Trophy winner where he belongs: on top.
DAILY DUBCAST. Today's Eleven Dubcast explores the aforementioned "Tradition Evolved" campaign that Ohio State will roll out for Buckeye football fans at home this season.
SONG OF THE DAY. "Ohio" - Caamp.
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