COLUMBUS, Ohio -- As they jogged up the Ohio Stadium tunnel following the 28-19 win over Northwestern, Ohio State players waved foam hands with four fingers raised, a reference to Jeremiah Smith's No. 4 jersey.
Some players even tossed the hands bearing the slogan "JJ4ITALL" into the stands.
This week, Ohio State officially launched its Heisman campaign for its record-breaking wide receiver.
On Saturday, Smith reinforced his argument.
Behind their star playmaker, the Buckeyes snapped a two-game losing streak to keep their playoff and Big Ten title hopes alive.
Smith caught 11 passes for 117 yards to break the Big Ten career receiving yards record. On his fourth reception, he surpassed Purdue's John Standeford (2000-03), who had held the conference record with 3,788 yards.
Smith, who now has 3,875 career receiving yards, also tied the Big Ten record with his 17th 100-yard receiving game, matching the mark shared by Purdue's David Bell and Michigan's Braylon Edwards.
Smith had already broken the Big Ten record for touchdown receptions, passing Edwards earlier this season.
His 42nd career touchdown catch gave the Buckeyes a 28-13 lead with 6:33 remaining in the fourth quarter.
"Maybe there's a better player out there," Ohio State coach Ryan Day said when asked about Smith's Heisman case. "But this guy's completely dominant -- and I think he deserves it in the big way."
During last Saturday's 41-28 loss to Oregon, the Buckeyes went almost two full quarters without targeting Smith as the Ducks reeled off 38 unanswered points.
But against Northwestern, Ohio State went Smith's direction on 10 of its 29 first-half plays. Smith finished with 17 targets, delivering a series of critical catches to keep the chains moving.
Midway through the third quarter, the Buckeyes clung to a 14-13 lead and faced third-and-10 at the Northwestern 28. Freshman quarterback Luke Fahey found Smith along the boundary, where he made a leaping grab on an out route. Officials initially ruled the pass incomplete, but overturned the call after review, determining Smith got a foot in bounds.
Four plays later, Fahey connected with Devin McCuin for a touchdown, extending Ohio State's lead to 21-13.
Day said there was a concerted effort after the Oregon loss to get Smith involved early and often Saturday.
"The No. 1 goal is to win, but we also have an obligation to this young man, what he's done for our program, who he is as a person, how he plays, what he does for his teammates, what he means to this program," Day said. "He deserves the opportunity to touch the football. ... We put the plan together and I thought there was a lot of good things on how we were really trying to work on that, because everybody in the country, the first thing they're going to do is stop No. 4."
Smith didn't speak to reporters afterward, but his performance helped Ohio State (7-3, 5-2 Big Ten) earn its first victory since Oct. 17, when starting quarterback Julian Sayin injured his throwing arm.
"The thing that makes him even more special is like, yeah, he takes pride in [contending for the Heisman], but he just wants to win. You should see how happy he was with his teammates winning the game. That's all he cares about," Day said. "When he doesn't win, he gets emotional, and that's the type of person he is. So obviously I feel very, very strongly about that with him and I hope that the voters look at that because this is something, in my opinion, he deserves."