Iowa HC Kirk Ferentz Makes Bold Comparisons For Ohio State Star Jeremiah Smith

We're running out of things to say about Ohio State superstar wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, so, instead, we'll provide pro comparisons.

Speaking at his weekly press conference, Iowa Hawkeyes head coach Kirk Ferentz — whose Week 5 opponent is the No. 5-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes (Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET) — offered up a unique player comparison for Smith, specifically regarding his physical impact on a game.

"There are several guys over the last 20-plus years, but the first guy that comes to mind would be [Penn State Nittany Lions running back] Saquon Barkley. Just different guys. They're at a little different level [than other players]," Ferentz, who has been Iowa's head coach since 1997, said when asked if he had a comparison for Smith. "The performance Barkley had against us [in 2017] is about as impressive as you're going to see.

"I thought we knocked him out of the game. He took a hit and came back in a couple plays later. It's amazing. A really good player plus great toughness, and he's doing the same thing in the NFL."

Barkley torched the Hawkeyes' defense in the two games he played against them.

In 2016, Barkley rushed for 167 yards and one touchdown on 8.4 yards per carry, while also pulling off a 44-yard receiving touchdown in a 41-14 win for Penn State. Then, in the 2017 road bout that Ferentz referenced, Barkley rushed for a career-high 211 yards and one touchdown on 7.5 yards per carry, while also totaling 12 receptions for 94 yards in a 21-19 win for the Nittany Lions that saw them win the game on a seven-yard touchdown pass from Trace McSorley to Juwan Johnson as time expired in the fourth quarter. 

Barkley was a two-time Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year Award winner, leading the conference with 18 rushing touchdowns in both 2016 and 2017. He also finished fourth in the voting for the 2017 Heisman Trophy Award and was selected by the New York Giants with the No. 2 pick in the 2018 NFL Draft.

In the pros, Barkley has won the 2018 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Award and the 2024 NFL Offensive Player of the Year Award — in what was a campaign that saw him become the ninth player in NFL history to rush for 2,000 yards in a single season — while racking up three Pro Bowl nods and helping the Philadelphia Eagles win Super Bowl LIX, among other accomplishments.

As for the 6-foot-4 Smith, the junior receiver recently became Ohio State's all-time leader in receiving yards and is coming off the best statistical game of his career. In a 42-19 win at home over the Illinois Fighting Illini on Sept. 26, Smith totaled 12 receptions for 217 yards and four touchdowns, which were all career highs.

On the year, Smith, who's averaging 16.2 yards per reception over his collegiate career, has totaled 33 receptions for a nation-high 617 yards and seven touchdowns. He led the Big Ten in receiving yards in both 2024 and 2025, while leading the conference with 15 receiving touchdowns in 2024.

Smith (34 receiving scores) is now two away from passing Chris Olave as the Buckeyes' all-time leader in receiving touchdowns, and is five receptions away from passing Emeka Egbuka as the program's all-time leader in receptions (Smith has 201 career receptions).

Ferentz conceded there's only so much the Hawkeyes' defense — which is first in the Big Ten in opponent points (8.0 per game), third in opponent rushing yards (87.8 per game), fourth in opponent passing yards (152.0 per game) and fifth in opponent yards (239.8 per game) — can do to slow down Smith on Saturday afternoon, who also reminds the coach of a Hall of Fame wide receiver.

"I remember, two years ago, getting ready to play [Smith and the Buckeyes] and watching a couple plays he made the week before where he's perfectly defended, and he still makes the play, and sometimes that's the way it goes," Ferentz said. "I remember being up at the New England Patriots' training camp in the late 2000s and seeing Randy Moss do the same thing on a red-zone play. I'm sitting next to the secondary coach, and he looked at me and just shrugged.

"That's what great players do. If you can find a way to maybe make them play a little bit off their rhythm, that's a good thing, but it's easier said than done."

After lighting up the Mid-American Conference with the Marshall Thundering Herd from 1996-97, the 6-foot-4 Moss went on to be a four-time All-Pro and lead the NFL in receiving touchdowns five times. Furthermore, Moss stands second in NFL history with 156 receiving touchdowns and fourth with 15,292 receiving yards. He was a first-ballot Hall of Famer in the Class of 2018.

As for the aforementioned 2024 Iowa-Ohio State game, Smith was actually held to just four receptions. Granted, those completions went for 89 yards and a score in a 35-7 win at home for the Buckeyes.

Iowa is coming off a thrilling victory on the road over the then-No. 18-ranked Michigan Wolverines, as quarterback Hank Brown and wide receiver Reece Vander Zee hooked up for a walk-off, 16-yard touchdown as time expired, moving the Hawkeyes to 4-0 on the year.

Prior to their Big Ten season opener, the Hawkeyes got wins at home over the Northern Illinois Huskies (40-0), Iowa State Cyclones (16-13) and Northern Iowa Panthers (55-0). Meanwhile, Ohio State has wins at home over the Ball State Cardinals (56-3), Kent State Golden Flashes (59-3) and Fighting Illini (42-19) under its belt. The Buckeyes' one blemish is blowing a 20-point, second-half lead to the now-No. 1-ranked Texas Longhorns on the road in Week 2.

Ohio State has historically dominated Iowa, boasting a 17-3 record in the all-time series. With that said, the Hawkeyes were victorious the last time they played the Buckeyes in Iowa City, annihilating them 55-24 in 2017.