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Octavian Smith Jr. ready to be Maryland football’s top receiver after early struggles

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6 months ago

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Octavian Smith Jr. ready to be Maryland football’s top receiver after early struggles


After Tai Felton and Kaden Prather were selected in the 2025 NFL Draft last weekend, one man stands atop Maryland football’s receiver room: Octavian Smith Jr.

As the only player still on Maryland’s roster that finished top six in receiving yards last season and one of three seniors at the position, expectations have soared. He is no longer the young, speedy gadget receiver who occasionally flashes his potential on an end–around or shovel pass. His responsibility has multiplied, but Smith said he’s built for it.

“When the pressure’s on, I don’t really fold,” Smith said. “When things get rough, we need a play, I want [the team] to come look for me.”

Smith not only has an obligation to the team, but to himself. With NFL aspirations, Smith has one more season to prove he deserves a shot at the next level and continue a long list of NFL-caliber receivers to come out of College Park in recent years.

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“[There’s] really a sense of urgency,” Smith said. “It being my last year … now [I’m] at a point in time [where I] really got to dig deep within [myself] and lay it all on the line.”

Smith has channeled this into motivation for the upcoming season, approaching it with an ultra-focused mindset.

In his first outing as Maryland’s go-to receiver in the Red-White Spring Game on Saturday, Smith won the JoJo Walker Wide Receiver Award after he hauled in a game-high five catches for 17 yards and a touchdown from freshman quarterback Malik Washington.

His success this spring marks a continuation of the steady improvement Smith has shown since he arrived in College Park. As a freshman, Smith appeared in all 13 games as a receiver and kick returner, recording 12 receptions for 157 yards and two touchdowns, including an impressive catch in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl against NC State.

Smith totaled 10 more receptions and 52 more yards in his sophomore season than his freshman one. And the progress persisted into his third year, when Smith established himself as a starting receiver and posted 30 receptions for 315 yards and two touchdowns.

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Head coach Michael Locksley has likened Smith’s development to Felton’s, who was selected in the third round of the NFL draft by the Minnesota Vikings Friday night after leading the Big Ten in receptions (96) and receiving yards (1,124) in the regular season.

“He’s a guy that has kind of followed along that Tai Felton path,” Locksley said after the spring game. “As a freshman, he contributed … year two, his catches went up, his numbers went up, his reliability went up, showing up for the things he needs to do to be a better player. His junior year, he’s really grown. And now, he’s the guy that’s kind of the old man in the room per se, and I like what I’m seeing out of Octavian.”

Being one of the oldest and most experienced players at his position not only comes with a production expectation, but a leadership one as well. Luckily for the Terps, leading an offense comes naturally to Smith, who played quarterback at Paint Branch High School in Burtonsville, Maryland.

Smith has always been the lead-by-example type. His play on the field spoke for itself in high school, but Smith’s success started in practice. During 100-yard sprints, Smith made sure to finish at the back of the end zone, pushing himself those extra 10 yards. Soon enough, his teammates followed suit, Paint Branch head coach Michael Nesmith said.

“Being a leader, that’s something I’ve always had in me,” Smith said. “There’s pressure that comes behind that, but I’m built for it, so there’s really nothing new to me.”

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Unselfishness is also an essential part of being a leader, and nothing displays Smith’s attitude more than the first play of his senior year highlight reel.

Yet getting to this point as a player and leader was never a given for Smith. Although his freakish athleticism and large hands made the transition from quarterback to receiver gracious, off the field issues held Smith back — but not in the traditional sense.

For most of his football career, Smith has been a larger-than-life, overly-positive personality. But he is also very sympathetic, and thus outside problems sometimes bled into his play on the field.

“He’s sensitive, in a positive way, and he can internalize drama and problems and issues going on amongst his friend circle, or his family even, and they can affect him,” Nesmith said. “He wants to be the problem solver, and when you’re playing at that level and the stakes are so high, sometimes that can distract you.”

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As a result, Smith started last summer behind the eight ball, Locksley said. But he’s changed his habits since then and learned to compartmentalize his life, focusing on football when needed while still being there for others, Smith said.

The adjustment from bad to winning habits, as Locksley called it, powered Smith’s improvement this past season and serves as something he can build upon.

“He’s somebody that the fans can really root for. He truly is one of the good guys,” Nesmith said. “In today’s day and age, and I can’t knock the guys that get the money … and have different motivations, to each his own, [but] he still has a genuine purity of heart and spirit that is something to aspire to.”



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Constellation unveils proposals for new gas plant, battery storage infrastructure in Maryland

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12 hours ago

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November 5, 2025

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Constellation unveils proposals for new gas plant, battery storage infrastructure in Maryland


Constellation Energy began making its case Tuesday that it should be the go-to company if Maryland expands power generation within its borders, filing plans for several new power-generating plants under a new fast-track approval process.



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‘We call it ‘the pretzel’: First-of-its-kind bladder cancer treatment now in use in Maryland – WTOP News

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2 days ago

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November 3, 2025

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‘We call it ‘the pretzel’: First-of-its-kind bladder cancer treatment now in use in Maryland – WTOP News


An innovative new treatment option for bladder cancer, recently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, has been performed for the first time in Maryland.

An innovative new treatment option for bladder cancer, recently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, has been performed for the first time in Maryland.

Dr. Heather Chalfin, a urological oncologist and surgeon at Frederick Health, recently administered Maryland’s first gemcitabine intravesical system, under the brand name Inlexzo, which was approved by the FDA in September.

“We call it ‘the pretzel,’ because it’s a device that curls up like a pretzel shape in someone’s bladder and releases chemotherapy over three weeks,” Chalfin told WTOP.

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Until now, patients with bladder cancer that has not invaded the bladder muscle, but are unresponsive to immunotherapy called Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (oftentimes abbreviated BCG) — and have chosen not to have or are unable to have bladder removal surgery — have been treated with chemotherapy.

“The problem with that is patients can only spend about an hour with that chemotherapy in their bladder in our office,” Chalfin said.

With Inlexzo, made by Johnson & Johnson, the device remains in the bladder for three weeks per treatment cycle, for up to 14 cycles.

“And then they come back and we swap it out for a new ‘pretzel,’ as opposed to just having that chemotherapy active for only an hour inside the bladder,” Chalfin said.

In the SunRISe-1 clinical trial, 82% patients had no signs of cancer after treatment. Fifty-one percent of the patients stayed cancer-free for at least one year, while long-term survival data on the new device is still being gathered.

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How ‘the pretzel’ works

Chalfin said the intravesical drug releasing system begins as a straight, springy device.

“The way we get it in is very similar to how we put in a urine catheter for many other situations, so it’s a very minimally invasive procedure,” Chalfin said.

Once the Inlexzo has been inserted, “A good way to think about is if you think about a Slinky — if you pull it a Slinky, it becomes straight, but then when you release it, it curls back up into a Slinky,” she said.

Every three weeks, the Inlexzo is replaced with another one.

“It’s a simple procedure that bladder cancer patients are already having regularly, which is called a cystoscopy, or a camera in the bladder,” Chalfin said.

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The procedure is done in the office, and patients go home the same day, Chalfin said.

According to Frederick Health, 9,471 new cases of bladder cancer are diagnosed each year. The National Cancer Institute projects there will be almost 85,000 new bladder cancer diagnoses and approximately 17,420 deaths from bladder cancer in the U.S. in 2025, making it the sixth most common cancer in the U.S.

In addition to Inlexzo, Frederick Health is using blue-light cystoscopy technology, which enhances the visibility of certain bladder tumors that may have been missed with a traditional white light cystoscopy. The advancement improves detection rates, especially for early-stage or hard-to-see cancers.

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Clarksburg Flag Football Player Aysia Jones-Robinson is Attempting to Revolutionize the Sport

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3 days ago

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November 2, 2025

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Clarksburg Flag Football Player Aysia Jones-Robinson is Attempting to Revolutionize the Sport


Recently, girls flag football has become a major high school sport in the U.S. For Clarksburg High School in Maryland, junior Aysia Jones-Robinson has been looking to revolutionize flag football.

Jones-Robinson, who plays both quarterback on offense and cornerback on defense, led Clarksburg to Maryland’s first high school girls flag football state championship in 2024.

“It’s a blessing,” said Jones-Robinson. “A lot of schools have it now, and not a lot of people make it. For us to be one of those teams that do, it feels amazing.”

For 2025, the Coyotes finished the regular season as the top girls flag football team in Montgomery County with a perfect 10-0 record. They went on to crush Paint Branch 42-8 in the County Championship.

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The 2025 Maryland girls flag football playoffs began in late October, with Clarksburg being the top seed in the 4A-3A West Region. They shut out Oakdale 41-0 in the second round on Nov. 1, with Jones-Robinson throwing four touchdown passes and rushing for a score.

“First, to do it the first time, nobody did it,” said Jones-Robinson. “The second time, we’re more connected than we were last year. We have a great team chemistry, great team bond. I think we have the potential to go back, and I think it fully.”

Last year, Montgomery, the largest public school system in Maryland, launched girls flag football as a pilot program along with Baltimore City and Washington County. This resulted in the Coyotes’ program coming into play.

“I saw that it was a new sport at the school,” said Jones-Robinson. “I told my friends, ‘Let’s do it.’ We got good at it, and we just never stopped from there.”

Clarksburg girls flag football head coach Kyle Landefeld has done a remarkable job with Jones-Robinson and the team in general. He also happens to be a social studies teacher at the school.

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“I’ll tell you what, you just never know what’s going to happen,” said Landefeld. “But you know it’s always going to be good. As a coach, you just sit there and smile and go, ‘This life’s good.’ So I love it.”

“Landy’s a great coach,” said Jones-Robinson. “We have a great coaching staff, great supported staff. It’s just a great program, great energy around everybody. Nobody thinks they’re better than somebody else. It’s great energy.”

Clarksburg quarterback Aysia Jones-Robinson in action in the team's second-round playoff game vs. Oakdale.

Clarksburg quarterback Aysia Jones-Robinson in action in the team’s second-round playoff game vs. Oakdale. / Harry Lichtman

Jones-Robinson was born on July 6th, 2009 at Holy Cross Medical Center in Silver Spring, Md. Her mother Angelica Jones, her father Willie Robinson IV, and her brother Willie Robinson V are also athletes in their own way.

Angelica played basketball and softball, and still plays flag football, while Willie IV played tackle football and basketball. Willie V currently plays tackle football and basketball for Quince Orchard High School in Gaithersburg.

While she may go to Clarksburg, Jones-Robinson lives in Germantown with her family. “For me to transition to a new school with people I didn’t know was very different,” she said.

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Jones-Robinson first got into sports when she was just two years old, showing mainly an interest in basketball.

“I was playing basketball since I was two,” said Jones-Robinson. “For me to take on another sport, I felt like the challenge would have been difficult. But it wasn’t, and i got good at it. It was just up from there.”

The Clarksburg junior happens to be a two-sport athlete with flag football and basketball at the school. She has shown her remarkable athleticism in both sports.

“We have a great basketball program,” said Jones-Robinson. “We also have a great flag program. For us to transition over, it was a big step, but we got it done.”

Jones-Robinson’s sports idols include NFL quarterbacks Lamar Jackson and Jayden Daniels, NBA legend Kobe Bryant, and WNBA star Angel Reese. However, most people have compared her style of play to that of Jackson.

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“I feel like it’s a huge comparison,” Jones-Robinson stated about the Ravens quarterback. “Especially since he’s one of the people I admire the most, and take after his game a lot.”

Throughout the 2025 season, High School on SI has conducted weekly Maryland high school girls flag football Player of the Week polls. Jones-Robinson has been nominated multiple times for her incredible performances.

“It feels good,” said Jones-Robinson. “Because not a lot of people get it. For me to get it multiple times, it feels really good.”

Whether she passes for four or five touchdowns, or over 150 or 200 yards, Jones-Robinson feels proud to be representing the state of Maryland for high school girls flag football.

“It’s a big, big blessing,” said Jones-Robinson. “It’s a big opportunity. I can’t thank nobody else but God, and putting me in this predicament. I thank my parents for also putting me in this predicament as well.”

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As for her athletics future, Jones-Robinson hasn’t thought much about it as she is only a junior in high school. For now, basketball seems to be in the cards for her eventual college decision.

“I haven’t thought about it yet,” said Jones-Robinson. “But I would like to go to a college where i could get a scholarship for basketball and flag as well.”

Coach Landefeld feels very confident about Jones-Robinson’s future, as she will most likely get to play one more season when she is a senior in 2026.

“She’s a gifted athlete,” said Landefeld. “She’s just got to make some decisions on where she wants to go with this. The sky’s the limit.”

With the way girls flag football has been growing in high schools across the U.S., it’s only a matter of time before more American colleges add it as an official sport.

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“It would give more women opportunities to play more sports in college,” said Jones-Robinson. “It would boost their confidence, I think. A lot of people would come out and try out for the sport.”



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