Ryan Day’s Ohio State receiver Jeremiah Smith needs 42 more yards to become the first Buckeye to reach 3,000 career receiving yards and the 13th player in Big Ten history to do it. Saturday’s Illinois game also has another story developing before kickoff. The Buckeyes are bringing back a former defensive star whose ties to the program go far past his playing days.
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Ohio State named James Laurinaitis the Victory Bell Ringer for the Week 4 home game. Laurinaitis now works as Ohio State’s linebackers coach. He was a three-time All-American and is part of the 2026 College Football Hall of Fame class.
In May 2026, Day named Laurinaitis the ringer during a speech to official visitors inside Ohio Stadium.
“Then we started a tradition last year that we have some of our former players come back and ring the Victory Bell before a game,” Day explained the newer Ohio State tradition before revealing the Week 4 honoree. And next year, before the Illinois game, Coach Laurinaitis, who’s being inducted to the College Football Hall of Fame, is going to ring the Victory Bell before that game.”
Laurinaitis played linebacker at Ohio State from 2005 through 2008. He appeared in 51 games and started the final 40. Those teams went 43-8 overall and 29-3 in the Big Ten.
They finished 4-0 against Michigan and won four straight Big Ten titles. Laurinaitis did not win a national title as a player. The Buckeyes lost to Florida and then to LSU. He later came back to coach at the same program.
He led Ohio State in tackles three straight seasons. 115 in 2006, 121 in 2007, and 130 in 2008. Only A.J. Hawk and Marcus Marek also led the team in tackles three years in a row. He set a BCS championship-game record with 18 tackles against LSU. Ohio State inducted him into its Athletics Hall of Fame in 2018.
Laurinaitis will become the first current member of Ohio State’s football coaching staff to ring the pregame Victory Bell. He returned to Columbus as a graduate assistant in 2023 after one year at Notre Dame. Day promoted him to full-time linebackers coach in February 2024. His Hall of Fame induction is set for December 2026 in Las Vegas.
The Victory Bell tradition and the upcoming game
The Victory Bell dates to 1954. Members of Alpha Phi Omega first rang it after home wins so people across campus who could not attend or follow on the radio would know the Buckeyes had won. It still rings for 15 minutes after home victories and 30 minutes after a win over Michigan.
The Buckeyes added a pregame version last season as part of its gameday plan. This happens only at home games. The postgame ringing by Alpha Phi Omega still happens after home wins.
This will be the third home-game ringer of 2026. On September 5 against Ball State, Maurice Clarett rang the bell. On September 19, versus Kent State, Katie Smith received the honor. She is a women’s basketball Hall of Famer and current assistant coach, and she was the first woman chosen.
The September 12 game at Texas was on the road, so there was no ringer. Jaxon Smith-Njigba rang the bell at the April 18 spring game. Since the pregame tradition began in 2025, Ohio State has used it at every regular-season home game in Ohio Stadium.
The ceremony comes before a Big Ten opener. Ohio State is 2-1 and ranked No. 7 in the AP and Coaches polls. The Buckeyes beat Ball State 56-3, lost at Texas 23-24, and beat Kent State 59-3. Illinois is also 2-1 after beating UAB 42-23, losing to Duke 27-31, and beating Southern Illinois 48-10.
It is a conference opener for both teams. They play for the Illibuck trophy. Ohio State opened as a 27.5-point favorite. The Buckeyes have won 10 straight against Illinois, and Illinois last beat them in 2007.
Smith already owns 2,958 career receiving yards. He needs those 42 yards to hit 3,000. That would make him the first Buckeye receiver to reach the mark and the 13th in Big Ten history. He also needs 27 receptions to pass Emeka Egbuka’s school record of 205 and 6 touchdown catches to pass Chris Olave’s school record of 35.
This will be Illinois’ first trip to Columbus since 2017.