College football Week 4 preview: Can anyone stop Ohio State freshman Jeremiah Smith?

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College Football

Updated Sep. 18, 2024 1:39 p.m. ET

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Laken Litman

College Football & Soccer Analyst

RJ Young

FOX Sports National College Football Analyst

Michael Cohen

College Football and College Basketball Writer

FOX Sports’ “Big Noon Kickoff” crew travels to Columbus, Ohio, this weekend as the No. 3-ranked Buckeyes get set to host Marshall in a Week 4 non-conference matchup (12 p.m. ET on FOX and the FOX Sports App).

There are plenty of intriguing storylines surrounding this Ohio State team, including the play of freshman wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, who has taken the college football world by storm in his first two games. The top-ranked prospect in the 2024 class has made an immediate impact in Columbus, hauling in 11 catches for 211 yards and three touchdowns in his first two collegiate games. Will the Buckeyes’ freshman wideout be able to put together another memorable performance this weekend against a Marshall team that is off to a 1-1 start?

Will Howard connects with Jeremiah Smith for a 70-yard touchdown to extend Ohio State’s lead over Western Michigan

There are several other eye-catching matchups across the country in Week 4, including No. 12 Utah’s trip to Stillwater to battle No. 14 Oklahoma State in a Big 12 showdown. Meanwhile, No. 18 Michigan, fresh off making a quarterback change, will welcome No. 11 USC to the Big House in an early-season Big Ten matchup.

FOX Sports college football writers Laken Litman, Michael Cohen and RJ Young are here to preview the biggest storylines heading into Week 4.

No. 3 Ohio State hosts Marshall in a Week 4 non-conference matchup before kicking off Big Ten play the following weekend. What are you looking to see from Ryan Day’s team in this game?

Laken Litman: Ohio State needs to stay sharp and avoid the kind of disaster Notre Dame experienced in Week 2. Marshall might be an inferior opponent, but the Buckeyes can’t overlook this week, especially with Big Ten games beginning next week. Because that’s what the Fighting Irish did a couple of weeks ago when they were stunned by Northern Illinois at home. Teams like Ohio State (and Notre Dame) need to beat the teams they’re supposed to beat.

The Buckeyes were idle last week, so Ryan Day and his coaching staff need to make sure their team is prepared and ready to go.

Michael Cohen: It would be difficult for Ohio State to play much better than it did during a Week 2 demolition of Western Michigan in which the Buckeyes churned out 683 yards of total offense and limited the Broncos to just 99, including a miniscule rushing average of 0.9 yards per carry on 31 attempts that were equally fruitless and frivolous. Day’s team scored touchdowns on all four of its trips to the red zone and held the ball for more than 10 minutes in each of the last two quarters. About the only thing Ohio State failed to do against Western Michigan was force a turnover — something the Buckeyes did three times in the season-opening win over Akron.

Perhaps the biggest challenge facing Day and his coaching staff this week will be finding ways to generate that same level of intensity, focus and attention to detail from Ohio State’s players when facing another severely overmatched opponent. The Buckeyes’ offense roared out of the gates against Western Michigan by scoring touchdowns on its first three possessions and five of the first six overall. The defense only allowed the Broncos to cross midfield once for the entire game, and even that drive resulted in a missed field goal.

That’s the kind of dedication Ohio State’s coaches will want to see on a weekly basis, regardless of the opponent, during a season that everyone in Columbus believes has the potential to end with a national title.

Ryan Day’s Ohio State team scored touchdowns on five of its first six possessions in a 56-0 win over Western Michigan. (Photo by Jason Mowry/Getty Images)

RJ Young: Efficiency. Take care of Marshall without a hiccup. For Ohio State, style points are at a premium. With Georgia showing signs of vulnerability against a midfield SEC team like Kentucky, and Texas essentially ascending to No. 1 because it beat Michigan by double digits, the emphasis for the Buckeyes needs to be on scoring and holding a team like the Thundering Herd to little or nothing on the scoreboard.

The play of true freshmen throughout the country has been one of the top storylines through the first three weeks of the season, including Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, who has totaled 11 catches for 211 yards and three touchdowns through two games. What is your early impression of Smith, and is this pace sustainable for the Buckeyes’ standout freshman?

RJ: It’s enough to say Smith can leave Ohio State as its most decorated wideout, but he can also be the first wide receiver at Ohio State to win the Thompson-Randle-El Award, given to the Big Ten’s Freshman of the Year. He’s already putting up numbers that usually aren’t seen by a Brian Hartline receiver until their junior year.

Michael: With all due respect to Ohio State wide receiver Emeka Egbuka, who is a tremendous player and a potential first-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, it’s become increasingly clear that Smith is the Buckeyes’ best player at that position, even as a true freshman. There’s a reason Day pretended to faint during a news conference when word trickled out that Smith had committed to Ohio State despite late recruiting pushes from the likes of Florida State and Miami. Smith was the No. 1 overall prospect in the country, regardless of position, and a player routinely described by industry experts as having generational talent. It was both logical and lucky that Smith chose to join a program that has produced four first-round picks at wide receiver in the last three drafts alone.

The reason Smith’s torrid start to the season feels sustainable is because of how many different ways he can trouble opposing secondaries. At 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, Smith is among the most physically imposing wideouts in college football despite being 18 years old. He’s shown a propensity for transforming underneath routes into home run plays courtesy of his incredible run-after-catch ability, a trait he showed when catalyzing a simple screen into a 70-yard touchdown against Western Michigan. And he’s also shown an ability to win aerial battles downfield with relative ease, evidenced by his six catches on eight targets that traveled at least 10 yards beyond the line of scrimmage, all of which totaled 114 yards and two scores.

Right now, it’s hard to imagine any defensive back or defensive scheme that can stop him.

Laken: Early returns show that Smith will be the next great Ohio State receiver, following in the footsteps of Marvin Harrison Jr., Garrett Wilson, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Chris Olave, etc. He was the No. 1 overall recruit in the 2024 class, stands at 6-3, 215 lbs., and came in ready to play.

A true freshman, he’s only played two games so far and, obviously, the schedule will get tougher as conference games begin next week. That’s when we’ll learn more about Smith, but for now, early impressions indicate that he will be able to sustain these kinds of performances and will only get better.

Ohio State WR Jeremiah Smith has recorded 11 catches for 211 yards and three touchdowns through two games. (Photo by Jason Mowry/Getty Images)

No. 14 Oklahoma State hosts No. 12 Utah on Saturday in Stillwater. What do you expect to see in this game, and should the winner be considered the early-season favorite in what appears to be a wide-open Big 12 race?

Michael: The atmosphere in Stillwater, Oklahoma, for this game should be absolutely electric given the matching 3-0 records for both programs and the fact that an expanded College Football Playoff means each of them has a legitimate path toward contending for a national championship — not to mention a Big 12 title. With that kind of environment and pressure, the biggest question is how effective Utah starting quarterback Cam Rising will be in his potential return from a finger injury. Rising, who is playing his seventh season of college football, suffered the injury during the Utes’ 23-12 win over Baylor in Week 2 and missed the subsequent game against Utah State. He is expected to start this weekend, but how much the injury might bother him — if at all — is unclear.

Without Rising under center, head coach Kyle Whittingham turned to freshman signal-caller Isaac Wilson, the younger brother of former BYU star and No. 2 overall pick Zach Wilson, now with the Denver Broncos. Wilson was a four-star prospect and the No. 18 quarterback in the 2024 recruiting cycle, a player whose scholarship list included the likes of Arizona, Arizona State, Miami, Oregon and UCLA, among others. He has appeared in all three games this season — twice in relief duty, once as a starter — and thrown for 343 yards with four touchdowns and three interceptions. Wilson completed 60.6% of his passes and threw three touchdowns against Utah State last weekend, but the road environment at Oklahoma State will be a different animal. It’s the kind of game for which Rising has plenty of experience.

Laken: The winner of this game would be considered a favorite to win the Big 12 for sure, but you can’t discount Kansas State, who Oklahoma State has to turn around and play the following week. Right now, those three teams sit at the top of the conference.

As for this particular matchup, the Cowboys will have an advantage at home for sure. They’re coming off a 45-10 win over Tulsa where quarterback Alan Bowman threw for 396 yards and five passing touchdowns. De’Zhaun Stribling and Talyn Shettron combined to make 10 catches for 284 yards and three touchdowns. Meanwhile, running back Ollie Gordon II hasn’t been much of a threat yet this season. He ran for 126 yards and three touchdowns in the season opener, but the last two games he’s combined for 90 total yards rushing with only one touchdown.

Utah presents the biggest test that OSU has faced all year, but quarterback Cam Rising’s status is uncertain after he got hurt (again) against Baylor and sat out last week’s game vs. Utah State. Early reports suggest that Rising will play, and the Utes will need him to win in Stillwater. Regardless of what happens, this could be the Utes’ toughest game of the year because they don’t have to play Kansas State. And even with a loss, their College Football Playoff hopes will likely remain intact.

RJ: I expect to see a lot from the run game. That goes for both teams. Utah should plan to run the football on a team that allowed Arkansas to rush for 232 yards. For Oklahoma State, there’s a reason Gordon and the entire offensive line returned and that is to run the ball against a program like Utah and earn distinction as the best team in a conference it helped found and does not want to turn over to usurper.

Oklahoma State running back Ollie Gordon II has rushed for 216 yards and four touchdowns through the Cowboys’ first three games. (Photo by Brian Bahr/Getty Images)

Lincoln Riley’s USC Trojans are set to put their 2-0 record on the line this weekend against the defending national champion Michigan Wolverines. What do Miller Moss and the Trojans need to do to leave Ann Arbor with a victory, and what would a road win at Michigan do for this team’s confidence?

Laken: USC has probably watched a lot of Michigan film, especially the game against Texas, and what the Trojans have probably figured out is that if they can stop the run and pressure the quarterback, they’ll be in good shape.

Michigan coach Sherrone Moore announced Monday that Alex Orji would start against the Trojans, taking over for Davis Warren. Orji has seen limited action so far this season: he’s 3-of-6 passing with two touchdowns and has 10 rushing attempts for 58 yards. Last year, he backed up J.J. McCarthy and didn’t have a single passing attempt in the six games he appeared in. So USC’s defense, now led by new coordinator D’Anton Lynn, will need to make the QB uncomfortable and pass the ball.

RJ: Don’t fix what isn’t broken. Texas showed it can simply run its offense against Michigan and put up 31 points. Riley has what he needs at the skill positions to be explosive and put up a large number against a Michigan defense that looked soft in the middle when Kenneth Grant and Mason Graham were not on the field. Zachariah Branch should be champing at the bit to prove his worth against Will Johnson.

Michael: Based on the three games Michigan has played so far this season, it seems quite clear what any opponent must do to topple the Wolverines: stop the run and force whichever quarterback is on the field to move the ball through the air. Head coach Sherrone Moore’s group enters the weekend ranked 106th nationally in total offense due in large part to an atrocious and turnover-prone passing game that is among the worst in college football. Quarterback Davis Warren, who has already thrown six interceptions, officially lost the starting job on Monday afternoon when Moore told reporters that former three-star recruit Alex Orji will lead Michigan onto the field against USC for the first start of his career. The Wolverines’ aerial attack had sunk to 121st overall and last in the Big Ten after an unsightly win over Arkansas State in which Warren tossed three interceptions and failed to top 125 yards. That was enough for Moore to bench Warren late in Saturday’s game against the Red Wolves and commit to the change ahead of this week’s showdown with USC.

But for as ugly as Michigan’s 28-18 win over Arkansas State proved to be, the manner in which the Wolverines prevailed was a reminder of what this program is best at. Michigan ran the ball 44 times for 301 yards and three touchdowns on Saturday as the one-two punch of tailbacks Kalel Mullings (15 carries, 153 yards, 2 TDs) and Donovan Edwards (17 carries, 82 yards, 1 TD) were enough to offset Warren’s mistakes.

How well Michigan’s offensive line can assert itself against a revitalized USC defense will be among the most fascinating plot points this weekend. The Trojans, now under the direction of first-year defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn, another former Baltimore Ravens assistant, rank 33rd nationally in run defense after finishing the 2023 campaign outside the top 115. USC is one of only 14 Power 4 teams yet to allow a rushing touchdown this season.

Laken Litman covers college football, college basketball and soccer for FOX Sports. She previously wrote for Sports Illustrated, USA Today and The Indianapolis Star. She is the author of “Strong Like a Woman,” published in spring 2022 to mark the 50th anniversary of Title IX. Follow her at @LakenLitman.

RJ Young is a national college football writer and analyst for FOX Sports and the host of the podcast “The Number One College Football Show.” Follow him at @RJ_Young.

Michael Cohen covers college football and basketball for FOX Sports with an emphasis on the Big Ten. Follow him at @Michael_Cohen13.

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