COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio State football defensive end Tyreke Smith wears his inspiration into every practice, every game, every classroom. The tattoos spread across his body carry the words and faces of the influential men whose examples he hopes to follow — Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, Tommie Smith and John Carlos. “I Am the Greatest,” a tribute to boxing legend Muhammad Ali, runs in black ink across Smith’s right leg. His father, Randy, occasionally played clips of Ali’s speeches — such as the one that phrase came from, before a 1964 world championship bout against Sonny Liston. “Everybody thought he was one of the best, and I want to be one of the best,” Smith said. Smith spent his first two seasons at Ohio State in the shadow of the best. Nick Bosa’s excellence transitioned into Chase Young’s dominance as Smith watched two of the Buckeyes’ all-time great…
Continue Reading: Ohio State football’s Tyreke Smith striving for greatness in 2020
