Ohio State Buckeyes wide receiver Jeremiah Smith (4) runs during spring football practice at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center on March 17, 2025. Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Ohio State Buckeyes' Jeremiah Smith Reacts to Major Announcement

Originally posted on Ohio State Buckeyes on SI
By Andrew Kulha | Last updated Jul 2, 2025 11:15 AM ET

Jeremiah Smith was a superstar for the Ohio State Buckeyes as a freshman. He was one of the main reasons OSU won the College Football Playoff National Championship, and he's one of the top players in the country to watch heading into 2025.

Smith is the type of player even casual college football fans will tune in to see, and that makes him a NIL darling as well as someone that major brands are going to want to associate with. And by major, we're talking major.

We're talking brands like Nike and Adidas, though it recently came out that Smith spurned one in favor of a partnership with the other. That partnership was announced by Adidas on Twitter, and that was an announcement that Smith had a simple but powerful reaction to.

https://t.co/Rqq16DmZwq
— Jeremiah Smith (@Jermiah_Smith1) July 2, 2025

In a recent piece by Manny Navarro of The Athletic, Smith revealed that signing with Adidas over Nike was a personal decision for him.

“I’ve been wearing Adidas since I was a young kid, 11, 10 years old,” Smith said. “To be a part of the brand is something special.”

For older fans, making a statement with praying hands may seem a bit anticlimactic, but it's a bold and powerful way to say a lot while saying little. A shoe deal is something that all athletes grow up dreaming about, and for many, it remains a dream.

For Smith, it's likely an answered prayer, though. That's what he's speaking to in his statement on the partnership.

At 6-foot-3, 215 pounds, Smith caught 76 passes for 1,315 yards and 15 touchdowns as a freshman.

He's one of the favorites to win the Heisman Trophy in 2025, and for good reason.

This article first appeared on Ohio State Buckeyes on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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