COLUMBUS — Few if any freshmen have ever arrived at Ohio State with more hype and fanfare than receiver Jeremiah Smith.

At every turn this offseason, with every conversation about the Buckeyes’ depth of talent, Smith’s tantalizing physical traits and advanced work ethic made it impossible not to already mention his name in the conversation of the best players on a stacked roster.

Yet it still may not have been enough to appropriately frame the value of what’s in store for Smith, both this season and in his college career.

Playing in his first college game on Saturday, Smith delivered a freshman debut for the ages in Ohio State’s 52-6 win over Akron, leading the team with six catches for 92 yards and the first two touchdowns of what seems destined to be an illustrious three-year run in Columbus.

Smith showed off a little bit of everything in his elite skillset, displaying excellent body control and in-air adjustment on a back-shoulder throw for his first touchdown, seasoned route-running on his second touchdown, and his straight-line speed and ability to reel in contested throws on a third-quarter pass that moved Ohio State to the 2-yard line and set up another touchdown.

From the very first snap, albeit against an overmatched Akron defense, Smith looked entirely comfortable and unphased by the enormous expectations attached to his name since he committed to the Buckeyes in December 2022.

“I don’t really feel pressure,” Smith said after the game. “I just want to go out there and play football and win games. I know all the hype around me was crazy coming in, but I just wanted to come in and just be a guy who works and not just be about all the hype. I just wanted to impress my coaches, impress my peers around me, and impress my teammates. That’s it.”

Suffice it to say Smith left quite the impression on all parties involved, and his chemistry with quarterback Will Howard was very apparent from the first offensive possessions of the season when Howard looked Smith’s way early and often. Smith said the chemistry between himself and Howard is a product of the work they put in during the offseason, and there’s more to come. “It’s going to get even better for sure,” Smith said.

For any quarterback, Smith’s play-making ability in all facets of the game offensively is a safety blanket that makes anyone’s job easier. Howard already has the utmost trust in Smith’s ability to go get the ball, and trying to man up on Smith in single coverage is now a must-throw for the senior quarterback.

“If he’s pressed (in coverage) and it’s one-on-one, put it up and he’ll make the play. And that’s exactly what he did,” Howard said of Smith’s performance on Saturday.

While Smith ended the day as one of the talks of college football, his afternoon didn’t get off to the best of starts. On the game’s opening drive, Smith dropped the first target of his career on a screen pass that could very well have led to a touchdown. Later in the half, he was flagged for an illegal formation penalty that had head coach Ryan Day very animated toward him on the sideline.

Despite the early miscues, Smith never blinked and quickly atoned for his mistakes, displaying the level of maturity his coaches and teammates have raved about this offseason in addition to Smith’s physical talents.

“Just move on, it’s football,” Smith said of not getting down on himself. “You have more football to play. You have four quarters of football, so just move on, keep my head down, and just keep working.”

Perhaps most telling of Smith’s value to what Ohio State hopes to do this season was both his head coach and teammate’s patience despite the early missteps.

“None of us were worried about him at all,” Howard said. “Obviously, it was a drop (on the opening drive) and that was uncharacteristic, but I threw a couple of bad passes. It’s not going to be perfect but it’s that next-play mentality. Mental toughness is the ability to move on to the next, most important thing. We knew his maturity level, so we weren’t worried about it. He came back and had a great game.”

Day said of Smith’s resilience, “You can see the talent, and we’re going to play right through just about all of (the mistakes). He’s another guy. Sometimes you look at him and don’t even think he’s quite human, but he is. He’s going to make a few early mistakes but not very many.”

Reach Dillon Davis at 740-413-0904. Follow him on X @DillonDavis56.