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Buckeyes' Devin Smith the next Maclin?

Fresh from the national title game, the projected high draft pick is on hand at Senior Bowl.

MOBILE, Ala. - If the Eagles were to draft Ohio State wide receiver Devin Smith, known for his capabilities as a vertical threat, they might evoke some comparisons to DeSean Jackson. But Smith said yesterday he's more interested in emulating Jackson's successor as the Birds' top receiver.

"I watched Jeremy Maclin a lot, especially when he was at Missouri," Smith said after yesterday's North team Senior Bowl practice at Ladd-Peebles Stadium. "He's a very smooth, smooth runner - just sassy when he runs. It looks so natural when he runs. It kind of reminds me of myself a little bit."

Smith, projected as anywhere from a first- to a third-round pick in the early going, said he has never met Maclin, whose frame is similar to Smith's, at 6-foot, 190.

The book on Smith is that he is great deep - 28.2 yards per catch on 33 catches, 12 for touchdowns, as a senior for the national champions - but is inconsistent otherwise. Not surprisingly, he disputes that.

"Show 'em that I can run all the other routes, besides the 'go' route, really working on my blocking . . . showing them that I can learn," Smith said yesterday, when asked what he thinks he needs to show NFL teams. He said he met briefly with the Eagles. "I played inside a lot at Ohio State, especially this past year, so I really believe I can do both."

Smith and Buckeyes corner Doran Grant are the only participants in the first-ever college championship game to make it to Mobile. They got here and began their quests for pro careers just a week after defeating Oregon; there might still be some couches smoldering and tear gas hovering along High Street in Columbus, Ohio, but Smith and Grant had to quickly recalibrate, in the wake of the biggest game of their lives.

"It's crazy how fast things go. Playing in college, being in the national championship game, and now I'm here," Smith said. He said he "got probably 3 or 4 days, pretty much to myself. I just went home, spent time with my family before I came out here.

"It's the start of a new chapter in my life, man, and I'm really blessed for the position that I'm in."

The key to catching the deep ball, Smith said, is "really body control. Eye contact with the ball, know how to track the ball down when it comes your way."

Smith knows body control from his track career as a high jumper. Last spring he finished second in the Big Ten Championships, clearing 7-feet, 1/2-inch.

"The pure focus that you need" is what translates best to football, he said. "When you high jump, you've got to make sure every step is on point, make sure your plant leg is right on the money. I think that pure concentration [is like] when the ball's in the air, to make sure you lock it in and secure it."

Of course, speed also comes in handy. Smith sprinted for the Buckeyes before concentrating on high jumping; he said he's hoping to blaze through the 40 in the 4.3 range this spring as he prepares for the draft.

In 2012, as a sophomore, Smith made a one-handed touchdown catch against Miami of Ohio that was much like Giants receiver Odell Beckham Jr.'s celebrated catch this past season.

"After he made that catch, a bunch of people were tweeting me, saying it was like that, [and] 'Devin did it first!' " Smith said. "It's really just a natural instinct to do things like that."

Senior moments

Southeastern Louisiana quarterback Bryan Bennett was a late addition to the South roster after Auburn's Nick Marshall agreed to practice as a cornerback. (Marshall hasn't looked that bad at it, considering.) Bennett, recruited to Oregon by Eagles coach Chip Kelly, transferred after the 2012 season, when it was clear Marcus Mariota was going to be the long-term starter. He showed a decent arm yesterday . . . Wideouts Tyler Lockett (Kansas State) and Phillip Dorsett (Miami) have showed impressive speed and hands, but they each measured in at 5-9 1/2. Duke's Jamison Crowder might be even flashier, but he registered at 5-8 . . . Pitt tackle T.J. Clemmings (6-4 1/2, 307) seems to head a solid group of Senior Bowl offensive-line prospects.

Blog: ph.ly/Eagletarian