INDIANAPOLIS — Devin Smith grew up admiring Jeremy Maclin.
Who knows? Maybe this fall he’ll play across from him. Or replace him.
Smith is one of the most exciting receivers in the draft, a legit big-play threat who doesn’t just have track speed but can really track a deep ball.
Playing in an offense that generated nearly 4,000 rushing yards, fifth-most in college football, he caught 33 passes for 931 yards last year, an NCAA-leading 28.2 yards per catch to go with 12 touchdowns.
“Jeremy Maclin is one guy I kind of model myself after a little bit,” Smith said at the NFL Scouting Combine. “I watched him when I was at Missouri. He was probably the reason I wore No. 9.”
Maclin wore No. 9 at Missouri and was the Eagles’ first-round pick in 2009. He’s the only wideout they’ve taken in the first round since Freddie Mitchell in 2001 (I know, I know).
Maclin had a career year for the Eagles with 85 catches for 1,318 yads and 10 TDs and made his first Pro Bowl, but he’s an unrestricted free agent a few weeks from the start of free agency.
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“He’s one of my favorite receivers,” Smith said. “The thing about him is that when he runs, it looks so natural and he runs so smooth that it really looks easy to him.”
The admiration is mutual.
"That was very cool to hear," Maclin said of Smith's comments. "I think he's going to be a really good receiver."
Smith had at least one 40-yard catch in nine of 15 games and at least one 30-yarder in 13 of 15.
More than half his catches — 18 of 33 — went for 25 yards or more.
Think the Eagles could use him?
“[He] can track the deep ball, and a lot of guys can't, and when it comes over the opposite shoulder, [he has] the ability to track it and move with it,” NFL Network draft analyst Mike Mayock said.
“He's got kind of that centerfielder skill to track the ball in the air, and that's rare, and when you combine it with his speed, that's a big weapon.”
Smith said his ability to track deep balls comes in part — ironically — from his track background.
“Really it’s just pure concentration,” he said. “A lot of it had to do when I high jumped throughout my whole career, at Ohio State and high school, the small details of making sure that your steps were always right and it kind of carried over to the football field.
“Just pure concentration — make sure your eyes follow the ball.”
Smith had a terrific track career at Ohio State, high jumping 7-0½, long jumping 24-7 and earning All-America honors as part of the Buckeyes’ 4-by-100 relay team.
But his future is in football. And depending on how Smith does this week at the combine, he could be anywhere from a late first-round pick to a second-round choice.
For a team like the Eagles, that released deep threat DeSean Jackson after the 2013 season and got minimal production this past season from Riley Cooper, Smith could be a perfect fit.
“That’s what teams need, they need guys who can go and get it,” Smith said. “I think I have that ability. I’ve shown it plenty of times in college so I’m just going to translate that to the next level.”
Smith should be one of the fastest receivers at the combine — he said he’s hoping to run somewhere in the 4.3 range Saturday.
But where he really hopes to help himself is when the receivers go through their on-field workouts, catching footballs from Marcus Mariota, Jameis Winston and the other QBs at the combine.
“It’s very important, especially when everybody says all I can do is run go-routes,” he said. “It’s very important for me to show these coaches that I can run every single route.”
Smith stands 6-0, 190 pounds but says he’s more than just a speedster — “It’s very important to be physical as well as being fast.”
Smith was at his best during Ohio State’s national championship run. In OSU’s last four games, he caught eight passes for 321 yards and four TDs.
What is the team that drafts Smith getting?
“They’re getting a guy who can run, is willing to learn, does whatever he can to help the team win no matter if it’s on offense or on special teams,” he said.
Smith said last year’s remarkable wide receiver draft class inspired him because he believes he’s as good as Odell Beckham Jr., Mike Evans, Kelvin Benjamin and all the other rookies who played at such a high level in 2014.
“I think it gave me a lot of confidence because a lot of those guys who were making those plays as rookie receivers were in my class, graduated the same year of high school,” he said.
“It gave me a lot of confidence to know that if they can do it, I can do it as well.”