For the past two years Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith has been one of the best players in the country, let alone at his position. As he enters his third, and presumably final, season with the Buckeyes, he's revealed that there have been some expensive offers out there for him to jump ship.
Speaking to On3 senior insider Chris Low, Smith said that if he had entered the transfer portal this offseason, he could have made a mint. He put the number at a whopping $10 million.
"Over 10 million dollars, easy," Smith said of the number.
But Smith made it clear that his focus is on winning championships and developing as both a player and person. He believes that those goals are best reached with the Buckeyes.
"I came to Ohio State for a reason, to win championships, develop as a player and a person and keep building on this legacy," he said.
From who?
College football fans immediately expressed doubt over the figure that Smith presented. People pointed out that $10 million for one college player for a single season or two is just outrageous.
"Who is paying $10 million United States Dollars for one player?" one user asked.
"This might be the biggest lie ever told lol. If this were true he would be the biggest moron on the world for turning down 10+ million," wrote another.
"10 million dollars for a wr? Right lol," a third wrote dismissively.
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The number might just be an estimate that Smith came up with in his head, or he could just be trying to show his commitment to Ohio State (in a roundabout way) by showing how much he was willing to turn down to stay.
Either way, Smith is probably just 12 months away from making significantly more money than that.
Barring something unforeseen, he'll almost certainly be the first non-quarterback taken in the 2027 NFL Draft and might even be the No. 1 overall draft pick depending on how things shake up next season.
At that draft position, he'll be making around three times what he supposedly would have made for transferring.
