Devin Smith celebrates after scoring one of his 3 touchdowns in the 2014 Big Ten Championship Game at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. OSU won, 59-0.
Credit: Mark Batke | Lantern Photo Vault
There are plenty of ways to describe Devin Smith.
He averaged 28.2 yards per catch in 2014—one of the top marks in NCAA Division I history—earning the term “deep threat.”
He suffered broken ribs, a punctured lung and two ACL tears in his right knee that cost him nearly three full seasons in the NFL at the start of his career, but returned and stayed in the league until 2021, earning the label “relentless.”
He also caught three touchdowns in the Big Ten Championship, torched Alabama in the Sugar Bowl, and led the Buckeyes in receiving yards and touchdowns en route to the first-ever College Football Playoff trophy, giving Smith the title of “Buckeye legend.”
There is, however, one label Smith isn’t ready to accept: retired.
It’s been four years since Smith was last on an NFL roster, but the wide receiver—who now helps mold the future as a coach and conditioner—still trains himself like a call is coming. Whether that call comes from the NFL, UFL or CFL, it doesn’t matter, because Smith is ready.
“I miss being part of a team,” he said. “I miss putting on that helmet, I miss running onto the field and hearing the crowd go crazy—I just miss it, man.”
Born in Akron, Smith spent his high school years in the football-crazed town of Massillon, Ohio, and the sport has always been his fuel.
A three-sport phenom in basketball, football and track, Smith drew offers from schools around the country on the track and gridiron, but knew he was destined for Columbus.
“Everything about Ohio State reminded me of Massillon,” he said. “The tradition, the fans, the pride. I knew I belonged there.”
Though he was a standout at Massillon, Smith felt like he had something to prove in Columbus. He was not selected for the Adidas Under Armour Game or the U.S. Army All-American Bowl and was only rated as a three-star recruit.
“When I got that letter that said I had been denied from those games, that lit a fire under me,” he said. “My entire high school career and going into college I felt like I was the underdog.”
Smith was recruited by Jim Tressel, who resigned in May 2011 amid NCAA violations from a tattoo-parlor scandal involving players. That meant he played his first season for Luke Fickell. As the team struggled—finishing just 6–7—Smith got the chance to see the field and show flashes of what he could become, scoring four touchdowns on the year.
Then came the Urban Meyer era.
“It was a culture shock,” Smith said. “He was on us about everything—our weight, our habits, our mentality. At first, it was tough, but he brought out the best in us.”
In 2012, Meyer led the Buckeyes to an undefeated season, although the team was not bowl-eligible due to the Tressel scandal. In 2013, they came up just short in the Big Ten Championship against Michigan State.
Then came 2014.
Despite losing Braxton Miller and eventually J.T. Barrett to injury, Ohio State went on to win a national championship in no small part due to Smith, who racked up 931 yards and 12 touchdowns.
No game showcased Smith’s brilliance more than the Big Ten Championship against No. 13 Wisconsin in Lucas Oil Stadium.
“That game was personal,” Smith said. “We remembered how it felt to lose in 2013. We wanted to make a statement.”
Three catches.
Three touchdowns.
137 yards.
A 59–0 beatdown.
A performance for the ages.
“It felt like everything we worked for came together in that moment,” he said.
The Buckeyes next defeated Alabama and Oregon to capture the national title, the first in the College Football Playoff era.
Coming off his monumental postseason run—which included 269 yards and four touchdown catches—Smith was picked in the second round of the NFL Draft by the New York Jets, but his NFL journey was rocky.
Injuries piled up.
Smith was welcomed to the NFL with a punctured lung and three broken ribs in his first training camp, followed by a late-season ACL tear that ended his injury-riddled rookie year.
After appearing in only four games in his second season while recovering from the tear, Smith’s rehab was finally over, and he was primed for his first full season as a pro in 2017.
After the first day of organized team activities, Smith stayed after practice to run some routes with quarterback Josh McCown. As he planted his right leg into the ground, he felt something buckle.
Even after Jets trainers and team doctors told Smith his knee tests came back fine, he knew something was wrong. When he sent the images to an outside doctor, the results confirmed his fears: his ACL was completely torn.
This sent him into what he calls a depression.
“I was in there rehabbing alone,” he said. “Watching games at home, thinking, ‘Man, I should be out there.’ That was the lowest.”
Despite his struggles, Smith never gave up. He returned to the NFL with the Cowboys in 2019—three years after his last time on a field—and played for four more teams, including the Jaguars, Patriots, Panthers and Texans. His last season came in 2021, as he reconnected with Meyer in Jacksonville, a stint that ended up being brief for both of them.
After leaving the NFL in 2021, Smith threw himself into family, training and mentorship.
Smith is now a father of four—DJ, Ara’liyia, Dash and Da’Mari—and a husband to his wife, Aliysha. He pours just as much energy into his family as he once did into his football career. He coaches DJ’s football and basketball teams. He helps out with his daughter’s soccer practices. He trains local kids in the Frisco, Texas area, whose parents have reached out due to his track record, and he’s happy to do it.
In the summer of 2023, he added another milestone: graduating from Ohio State with a degree in communications analysis and engagement. It was a promise to his mom, Anita.
“That was for her,” Smith said. “But it was also for me. To finish what I started and to prove to myself I could close that chapter.”
Smith said he has turned down multiple offers to become a high school coach, and while he doesn’t rule coaching out in the future, he fears that if he’s on the sideline now, he’ll “run on the field and run the route himself,” as he still sees himself between the lines—because stepping onto a sideline feels too much like stepping away.
Devin Smith’s story, in his eyes, isn’t finished.
“I still train like I’m getting ready for camp,” he said. “In my mind I never left.”
