Skull Session: Davison Igbinosun Calls Jeremiah Smith His Toughest Cover at Ohio State, Dennis Hopson is Rooting for Bruce Thornton to Break His Buckeyes Scoring Record

By Chase Brown on February 27, 2026 at 4:59 am
Jeremiah Smith
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch
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Welcome to the Skull Session.

Oh, man. Sonny Styles dominated the NFL Scouting Combine on Thursday, and Arvell Reese looked good, too!

Pretty, pretty, pretty good.

Have a good Friday.

 “BRUTALLY FRAMEMOGGED.” I recently learned that former Notre Dame and current Baltimore Ravens safety Kyle Hamilton is a hilarious human being. He posted this to X on Thursday, which provided further evidence of that fact:

Hamilton also called out NFL Network's combine host, Rich Eisen, for the simulcam of him and Styles running the 40-yard dash.

Both posts had me cracking up.

And it's true, Styles is one of one!

 IRON SHARPENS IRON. Davison Igbinosun is the ultimate competitor. In fact, Ryan Day often credits the former Ohio State cornerback room for revitalizing BIA in Columbus because of the edge he brought on and off the field.

When asked at the NFL Combine to name the wide receiver who challenged him the most during his three years with the Buckeyes, Igbinosun passed over 2024 No. 4 overall pick Marvin Harrison Jr. and 2025 No. 19 overall pick Emeka Egbuka to select a future top prospect in Jeremiah Smith.

“They’re all tough to guard, but I would say who stood out the most is Jeremiah Smith,” Igbinosun said. “He walked in the building doing some things we’ve never seen before.”

No kidding.

As a freshman in 2024, Smith made countless SportsCenter Top 10 Plays while recording 76 catches for 1,315 yards and 16 total touchdowns. He earned Big Ten Receiver of the Year honors while helping the Buckeyes win their ninth championship all-time.

With immense pressure to improve on a phenomenal freshman campaign, Smith did just that in 2025. Despite constant double teams and bracket coverage, the 6-foot-3, 223-pound receiver recorded 87 catches for 1,243 yards and 13 total touchdowns in what I’ll call 12.5 games (he played half the UCLA game and missed the Rutgers games due to a quad contusion).

All that said, it’s no surprise Igbinosun would answer Smith. He’s one-of-one, and he’ll continue to prove it in 2026 when he returns to lead an Ohio State offense alongside Heisman finalist Julian Sayin, Bo Jackson, Brandon Inniss and more.

 GOT ATHLETES? Sonny Styles, Arvell Reese, Kayden McDonald, Caleb Downs and Max Klare all appeared on NBC’s Pro Football Talk with Mike Florio and, of course, persona non grata Chris Simms during the NFL Combine. Their interviews were a lot of fun, and I recommend watching them in full this weekend.

I’m highlighting them here to continue the conversation about Smith, whom Styles, Reese, and McDonald all named among the most athletic players at Ohio State.

Sonny Styles

Arvell Reese

Kayden McDonald

Caleb Downs

Max Klare

While Styles picked Smith as Ohio State’s top athlete, he also pointed to cornerback Brenten “Inky” Jones as someone who can run and jump with the best of the Buckeyes. That surprised me, but not entirely. Jones was a two-way standout at Steubenville High School and also starred in basketball and track. In 2023, he was a nominee for the Burlsworth Trophy, presented annually to the nation’s top walk-on, before earning a scholarship entering the 2024 season.

Last month, walk-on wide receiver Dorian Williams posted on X that he hit 23.1 miles per hour during sprints. In the same post, Jones topped the list at 23.5 miles per hour.

Speaking of sprints, Styles added that his brother, Lorenzo, was among Ohio State’s fastest players over the past two years, frequently battling Smith to finish first in speed drills. With that in mind, I’m looking forward to seeing him run the 40-yard dash during Friday’s workouts at the NFL Combine.

 “I’M ROOTING FOR BRUCE.” I know the last Ohio State men’s basketball performance was — well, awful. But Bruce Thornton moved 10 points closer to breaking Dennis Hopson’s all-time scoring record for the Buckeyes. 

With three regular-season games remaining, Thornton is 51 points shy of the record. His season average of 20 points per contest puts him on pace to set the new mark during Ohio State’s Senior Day matchup with Indiana on March 7.

As he drives toward the record with the same force he uses to attack the basket, Thornton has a No. 1 fan cheering him on: Hopson himself.

“I really admire the commitment through all of the challenging times and the pressures that these kids go through,” Hopson told The Toledo Blade’s Dave Briggs this week. “Nowadays, if they’re not getting their way, kids are going to run and do something different. No disrespect to kids who do that, but it says a lot about Bruce in regards to his commitment to himself, his family, and Ohio State. He’s a class guy, a class act.”

Of course, Hopson told Briggs he’d be lying if he said the record didn’t matter to him. But knowing what Thornton has meant to the Buckeyes over the past four years, his pride for the record would be replaced with pride for Thornton inspiring the next generation of Buckeyes — just like he did in the ’80s.

“I’m rooting for Bruce,” Hopson said. “This couldn’t happen to a better person.”

No, it could not.

It would be pretty sweet to see Thornton break the record on Ohio State’s Senior Day, but I don’t want to wait to see him score his 52nd point in three games. What if he dropped 52 against No. 8 Purdue on Sunday? That shouldn’t be too hard, right? … right?

 GREAT WORK, JASON. This week, I learned Jason Moore is a journalism major.

The Ohio State defensive tackle published an article for the school’s independent student voice, The Lantern, detailing the science behind the football team’s nutrition program.

“On a typical weekday morning inside the Woody Hayes Athletic Center, workouts may not have started, but the work already has,” Moore wrote to open the article. “Smoothies are blending. Protein portions are weighed. Hydration levels are being checked. While fans focus on touchdowns and tackles, the real work for the Ohio State Buckeyes football team begins hours earlier in the fuel zone in the Woody.”

Ohio State nutritionist Kaila Olson told Moore, “We don’t just feed football players. We fuel performance.”

From Olson and assistant nutritionist Sarah Takach to Inky Jones and Miles Lockhart, Moore broke down how all of Ohio State’s players follow a structured meal plan designed to help them lose, maintain or gain weight. They also eat specific meals for days that include heavy training, recovery or rest.

Moore’s article was entertaining and informative. I recommend giving it a read!

 SONG OF THE DAY. "Break My Stride" - Matthew Wilder.

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