#53

Will Smith Jr.

DL · Ohio State · R-Jr. · #53

Returning to Ohio State for 2026
R-Jr. · Dublin, Ohio
via ohiostatebuckeyes.com ↗
This season's coverage starts August 26 — check back once kickoff hits.

Will Smith Jr.

DL · Ohio State · Jr · #53

Limited signal — not enough coverage for a story yet.

Career Arc

HS
Recruit
No recruit profile
CFB
College
Ohio State
2024–2025
NFL
NFL Draft
Not drafted (yet)

2025 snapshot

Season context · Team result + system

2024Ohio State14-2HC: Ryan Day · Run-leaning, fast tempo
2025Ohio State12-2HC: Ryan Day · Run-leaning

Career stats

SeasonTeam
2025Ohio State2090.00.0------
2024Ohio State110.00.0------
Career21100.00.0------

Signature game

SIGNATURE GAME · Week 5 · 2025

W 24–6

at Washington

1 TOT  ·  1 SOLO

How he plays

Play style

Wins his gap play after play.

CFB Index positional classification

2026 Outlook

Ohio State

2026 Depth chart

Projected starter

Defensive line · Ohio State

Returning around him

  • 31% of 2024 offensive production back (Moderate turnover)
  • 11 Ohio State players drafted to NFL
  • Transfer portal: -20 net (17 in / 37 out)

2026 Award watch

No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)

Ohio State · Last season: 12-2 (AP #3) · Talent rank #3 · 2026 recruiting class #4

DNA match

Player DNA

Two-Gap Base

Stout at the point of attack — steady tackle-for-loss production without a standout pass-rush number.

IDL

His 2025 production profile sits closest to Elijah Fuentes-Cundiff’s 2024 season.

Syracuse · 2024

#2

Troy Rainey

Rutgers · 2023

92%
#3

Dal'mont Gourdine

UConn · 2021

92%
#4

Michael Callahan

Boise State · 2021

91%
#5

Aaron Beckwith

Massachusetts · 2023

91%

Matches Elijah on

Sack rate
Hurry rate
Height

Differs from Elijah on

Class year (lower)

Not enough data yet for this comparison.

As a sophomore, his production profile tracks closest to Daniel Lyons's sophomore season at Florida State (2023).

Daniel Lyons

100%match

Florida State · 2023

#2

Cameron Roetherford

Cincinnati · 2024

88%
#3

Davonte Miles

Bowling Green · 2023

88%
#4

Brett Johnson

California · 2023

84%
#5

Brendan Flakes

Northwestern · 2024

84%

Matches Daniel on

Class year
Height
Hurry rate

Heisman trajectory

Heisman Trajectory · 2025

Peak #2987

Final rank
#2987
Avg #4649.0
Finalist prob 0%

Peaked at #2987 this season.

Background

Follow on Social Media Instagram: @iwillsmithjr Career Highs 3 Total Tackles (Two times – last vs. Rutgers on Nov. 22, 2025) Honors and Awards 2025: OSU Scholar-Athlete, Academic All-Big Ten Conference 2024: OSU Scholar-Athlete, Academic All-Big Ten Conference Redshirt Sophomore (2025) Appeared i...

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