Jeremiah Smith Trolls Jermod McCoy Comp After Ohio State's Win vs. Tennessee in CFP

Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith thought his battle with Tennessee defensive back Jermod McCoy in the opening round of the College Football Playoff was no contest.

Smith caught six passes for 103 yards and two touchdowns in the Buckeyes' 42-17 blowout of the Volunteers. On social media after the game, he made light of a post from Pro Football Focus suggesting he might have his hands full with McCoy:

College football fans have marveled at Smith all season. He was the No. 1 overall player in 247Sports' composite rankings for 2024, and he has been even better than advertised. The true freshman looks like he could more than hold his own in the NFL right now.

On Saturday night, Tennessee simply had no answer for Smith. His 37-yard touchdown reception on the game's first drive was only a taste of what was to come.

Toward the end of the Jim Tressel era at Ohio State, Buckeyes fans grew frustrated at how the program increasingly lacked the elite athletes who were populating the SEC's best teams. That changed after Urban Meyer's arrival and has continued under Ryan Day.

Now, SEC stalwarts such as Tennessee are trying to keep pace with OSU.

"Sure, players like Smith—the No. 1 recruit in the 2024 class—are rare," the Knoxville News Sentinel's Mike Wilson wrote. "But Tennessee doesn't have any players in its wide receiver room that can do anything like what Smith does. There is no one in the group that instills fear into a defense nor stretches it vertically."

Oregon knows what to expect in the rematch with Ohio State in the Rose Bowl on New Year's Day. The Ducks watched Smith haul in nine catches for 100 yards and a touchdown back in October.

Knowing the general offensive approach for the Buckeyes might do little to help nullify their biggest aerial threat, though.