Jeremiah Smith had a lot to prove this year, to many people.

He had to prove to himself that he belonged on a varsity field, after not playing any meaningful minutes as a junior. He had to prove to his coaches at Oswego East how much he wanted it.

Smith, though, was also driven by something much deeper and personal. It was the memory of his dad, who died last year.

Smith’s closest coach, his dad always pushed him to the next level. He told him what he had to do to become a better football player.

“I felt I had something in me, pushing myself,” Smith said. “I was more focused on my craft. I had to prove something. I had to better myself.”

Smith threw himself into his work in the gym. He put on more muscle but slimmed down, dropping from 345 pounds as a junior to 315 on a 6-foot-3 frame.

At left tackle, Smith is a pillar of an offensive line that’s gone from an unknown quantity in the preseason to a driving force in Oswego East’s 6-1 start.

“We had a lot of question marks coming in,” Oswego East coach Tyson LeBlanc said. “Him being able to develop as he did, he solidified a spot that we quite frankly had question marks about coming in.”

LeBlanc indeed had reason to wonder what kind of line he’d be working with this season.

Oswego East graduated two starters, its left tackle from last season Zach Morrisroe now at NIU. Two other linemen opted not to return to football.

But this group, left to right, of Smith, Connor Griffin, Greyson Hohimer, Anthony Thornley and Rocco LaCalamita has Oswego East’s running game humming like it hasn’t in almost a decade.

LeBlanc started to realize what he had up front in joint practices over the summer. It’s carried into the fall.

Jasiah Watson’s 253-yard, three-touchdown game in a 28-17 win against previously undefeated Yorkville on Friday has the Oswego East senior running back at 1,026 yards through six games.

“Realistically, we have to go back to Ivory Kelly-Martin, that is the last time we have had that much success running the football,” said LeBlanc, noting the former Wolves’ star who went on to Iowa. “No disrespect to the O-line guys we have had.”

Smith said that most of the line has been together for three years. That bond, he said, can take them a long way.

He hit the gym with cardio playing a big role in his body mass. He put on more muscle from lifting 2-3 times a day. He thanks Oswego East assistant Patrick Molinari for putting him on the right path to improve his muscle. The weight loss, the work with his speed and agility has allowed Smith to be able to move better.

“The big thing is definitely my confidence has gone up, knowing what to do. Last year I wasn’t the greatest player. Finding my confidence was a big thing,” Smith said. “I feel like I didn’t realize the strength that I had. I wasn’t playing to my size like I am now.”

LeBlanc said the biggest difference in Smith now is from a mental standpoint, how he approached the offseason and the work that he put in.

“He took steps developmentally and he has played really well,” LeBlanc said. “He is a big kid, he is good at moving people around. ”He has made himself into a good Class 8A offensive lineman.

“He has good feet for a guy his size, he plays physical, he plays through the whistle. More than anything, it is the development from last year to this year. He’s bought into the weight room and taken well to the coaching.”

With Smith and the line leading the way, Oswego East has clinched its first playoff bid since 2022, and is in contention for a Southwest Prairie West Division title.

“We definitely came with the mindset knowing we would be a solid team, proving everybody wrong,” Smith said. “Everybody thought we weren’t going to be as good. It’s nice to get this close to being conference champs.”

Foxes look to rebound from first defeat

Yorkville coach Dan McGuire did not need much time to watch film from his offense in last week’s game at Oswego East.

It was not on the field much.

Oswego East controlled the clock from start to finish, authoring three drives that lasted over six minutes and 30 seconds, and a 7:30 drive to ice the game. Stopping the run defensively, and establishing the run offensively, was on McGuire’s mind as he reviewed the Foxes’ first loss.

“We weren’t able to do either effectively,” McGuire said. “We had maybe three offensive drives in each half. We watched the film and it went by pretty quick. Credit to Oswego East. They had a good game plan, they were physical and they were able to run the ball effectively.”

McGuire expects more of the same from this week’s opponent, Plainfield North.

“Their defense is really good; I think they’ve been in every football game and they’ve had a lot of close games,” McGuire said. “They have had some injuries but they’ve done a good job of adjusting to those injuries. They’re very similar to Oswego East in that they’re going to try to shorten the game and run the ball effectively. Our possessions will be magnified.”

Conference call

The SPC West looks like it’s going to be well-represented when playoff pairings are announced a week from Saturday. Oswego East and Yorkville have already clinched bids with a sixth win, and Oswego, Minooka and Bolingbrook are in good shape with five.

Plainfield North could conceivably make it 6-for-6 by beating Yorkville and Oswego the last two weeks, if enough 4-5 teams are needed to fill out the field.

“As a group we have crossed over against good conferences and competed,” McGuire said. “We’re beating each other up, also.”