There is a debate that’s never-ending in Columbus: Who is the greatest Buckeye wide receiver of all time? After all, Ohio State did not earn its “Wide Receiver U” title by accident; it was built by building generations of greatness from Cris Carter, the first All-American receiver, to Jaxon Smith-Njigba. But Buckeye insider David Biddle thinks that a new star might just surpass them all, which might sit well with everyone.

On February 20th, Dave Biddle hopped onto his Buckeye Nut Morning 5 podcast (powered by 247Sports) and gave his favorite Buckeyes of the last few decades. He ran through all the legends like OG Chris Gamble, Troy Smith and Joey Bosa. However, when it came to the 2020s, he initially went with Jack Sawyer before changing his stance and doubling down.

“I gotta go JJ Smith. Got to go, Jeremiah Smith. He might go down as the best. In fact, he will go down as the best receiver ever at Ohio State, which is insane to say that, Cris Carter and all the rest. But he’s going to go down as the best. If he stays relatively healthy this year, he’ll go down as the best. I don’t think they’re going to be able to make an argument for anybody over him,” Buddle said before he doubled down with an even more controversial take.

“You just look at his Ohio State career. Then he would have to have a great pro career to beat Cris Carter in all things combined, and maybe JSN when all things have settled down here.”

According to Biddle, if Jeremiah stays healthy this year, unlike last season, there won’t be any argument left for anyone else. Now, let’s go toe-to-toe here. The numbers that Smith has been putting up this season and the last are honestly hard to fathom. In just his first season, Smith completely rewrote the freshman record books, grabbing 76 passes for 1,315 yards and 15 touchdowns, breaking Cris Carter’s 40-year-old freshman touchdown record of 8 TDs in only 9 games.

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Now, entering his junior year in 2026, Smith has already racked up 2,558 career yards and 27 TDs. What this means is he needs only 311 more yards to become the program’s all-time leader. If you compare him to recent first-rounders, his fast start stands out even more. Marvin Harrison Jr., widely considered one of the best, had only 11 catches for 139 yards as a freshman. Jaxon Smith-Njigba, the WR with a single-season yardage record (1,606), had only 10 catches for 49 yards in his first year. Jeremiah lapped them, becoming the fastest Buckeye ever to reach 1,500 career yards (doing it in just 19 games) and the only player besides Harrison Jr. to have back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons.

Still, some argue that JSN was more impressive because he had to share the ball with other NFL stars like Garrett Wilson, whereas Jeremiah Smith has been the “main guy” from day one. JSN’s peak was incredibly high, even though his career was shorter. It may be a bit early for a journalist like Buddle to say Smith will surpass JSN at the pro level in the years to come, considering the 1,992 yards, 12 touchdowns, and a Super Bowl LX championship.

Then again, you can’t talk about Buckeye receivers without Cris Carter. The man is a founding father of WRU. As the school’s first-ever All-American receiver, Carter set school records with 168 catches, 2,725 yards, and 27 touchdowns. He walked so the other wideouts could run. Despite Jeremiah beating his record, for the old school fans, Carter is the GOAT because he did it first and did it with a level of technique in an era where the run game had more value than the passing game.

Since everybody can make their argument about who’s the best and whatnot, there’s one facet where Jeremiah runs laps around both.

Jeremiah Smith’s physicality

One of the reasons people put Jeremiah Smith over them is simply the power he possesses. Physically, he’s a freak in the best way possible. Standing 6’3” and 223 pounds, he has 10-inch hands (bigger than the average NFL receiver).

The former five-star can squat somewhere around 550 pounds, with an estimated 6–9% body fat. Despite that power, he’s hit a top speed of 23.5 MPH on the field. You have to be in the 0.01% to be able to do that. Not even sure Seahawks WR1 or Mr. Clutch could pull that off.

In the end, it’s a tough call and comes down to perspective. If you value the single greatest season, you might still pick JSN. If you value legacy and NFL greatness, you pick Carter. But if you’re looking at who was the most dominant and unstoppable force to ever wear a Buckeyes jersey, Jeremiah Smith is making it really hard to vote against him if he runs the next season as before. By the time Smith finishes his 2026 season, he’ll probably own every record in the book, which might just settle the argument for good once and for all.