Smith broke two Ohio State records; coverage barely left the highlight reel
Jeremiah Smith caught enough passes against Iowa on Saturday to pass Chris Olave for Ohio State's all-time touchdown record and Emeka Egbuka for career receptions, in only 34 games. LeBron James posted "Throw It to 4!" in endorsement of Smith's Heisman case. The two outlets covering this told the same story from the same angle, with no dissent and no depth.
Jeremiah Smith breaks Ohio State records in win over Iowa; LeBron backs him for Heisman
2 sources · hover a dot to see coverage
What happened
Ohio State defeated Iowa 31-14 on Saturday. Wide receiver Jeremiah Smith set two Ohio State program records in the win: he surpassed Chris Olave's career touchdown mark and Emeka Egbuka's career receptions record, accomplishing both in just 34 games. LeBron James publicly backed Smith for the Heisman Trophy with a social media post reading "Throw It to 4!" Iowa's loss was framed by one Iowa-side columnist as a missed opportunity following a positive week. Ohio State entered the game ranked fifth nationally. Two outlets covered the story.
Both outlets ran the records; only one ran the Iowa side
Yahoo Sports and CBS Sports both led with Smith's record-setting performance and the Heisman angle. CBS Sports added the specific context that Smith needed only 34 career games to break both marks, which is the number that makes the feat legible. Yahoo Sports ran a separate Iowa-perspective column from columnist Leistikow, the only piece in this coverage that treated the game as a loss worth explaining rather than a showcase worth celebrating. That column called Iowa's performance "disappointing on both sides of the football." No outlet went further than the box score on what Iowa's defense actually failed to do.
What one side told you that the other didn't
Two records broken. Neither outlet asked what they mean.
Smith passing Olave and Egbuka in 34 games is the kind of number that invites a comparison piece, a historical frame, or at minimum a sentence about where he ranks among Big Ten receivers all-time. Neither outlet provided one. CBS Sports named the players he passed; Yahoo Sports named the records. The specific context that would make a casual reader understand how rare this pace is was absent from both.
LeBron's post got its own article. Smith's route running didn't.
Yahoo Sports published a standalone piece on LeBron James endorsing Smith's Heisman campaign via social media. That is a celebrity opinion about a college award. No outlet in this coverage described how Smith actually created separation against Iowa's secondary, what routes he ran, or how Iowa's defense schemed against him. The Heisman case was asserted, not demonstrated.
See how outlets across the political spectrum framed this differently — and what each side left out.