Is DeVonta Smith the greatest wide receiver in the history of college football?

The former Alabama standout was asked that question during an appearance on Thursday’s episode of the podcast “7 PM in Brooklyn with Carmelo Anthony.”

“I’d say yeah,” Smith said. “But then again, the receiver in me that kind of watched other receivers, like, guys that didn’t get the opportunities that I had. Like, you had Julio (Jones) in a run-first offense, was the only option in the pass game, doing the things that he did. You had (Amari) Coop(er), who was just like cooking everybody. You had guys like that. Of course, you got Justin Blackmon, he won the Biletnikoff back-to-back. It’s guys like that.

“I know I was cooking, but they was cooking, too. You got to have respect for them. Those guys kind of made me do what I did, like, take my receiver stuff to another level.”

As a member of the Crimson Tide’s 2020 undefeated CFP national-championship team, Smith won the Heisman Trophy, Maxwell Award and Walter Camp Award – the three major Player of the Year honors. He also won the Biletnikoff Award as the nation’s best receiver and the Hornung Award as the nation’s most versatile player.

As a unanimous All-American and the SEC Offensive Player of the Year, Smith had 117 receptions for 1,856 yards and 23 touchdowns in 2020. The yardage and touchdowns are SEC single-season records. Only Cooper, with 124 receptions in 2014, had more in one season among SEC players.

Smith and Michigan’s Desmond Howard are the only wide receivers to win the Heisman, Maxwell and Camp. In his award-winning season, Howard had 61 receptions for 950 yards and 19 touchdowns, but he augmented his offensive impact with a 31.1-yard average and one touchdown on 12 kickoff returns and a 17.4-yard average and one touchdown on 15 punt returns in 1991.

Smith returned 11 punts for a 21.5-yard average and one touchdown in 2020.

In citing top receivers who preceded him, Smith named two other former Alabama pass-catchers in Jones and Cooper.

A former Foley High School star, Jones had 179 receptions for 2,653 yards and 15 touchdowns for the Crimson Tide from 2008 through 2010. During those three seasons, Jones accounted for 31.5 percent of the receiving yards and 28.8 percent of the touchdown receptions for Alabama.

Cooper had 228 receptions for 3,463 yards and 31 touchdowns for the Crimson Tide from 2012 through 2014. During those three seasons, Cooper accounted for 34.0 percent of the receiving yards and 33.3 percent of the touchdown receptions for Alabama.

Smith played four seasons at Alabama. He had only eight receptions for 160 yards and three touchdowns as a freshman, although one of the receptions was a 41-yard touchdown catch to beat Georgia 26-23 in overtime in the CFP national-championship game for the 2017 season.

In his next three seasons at Alabama, Smith had 227 receptions for 3,805 yards and 43 touchdowns. During those three seasons, Smith accounted for 27.2 percent of the receiving yards and 30.1 percent of the touchdown receptions for the Crimson Tide.

Jones set the Alabama single-season record for receiving yards with 1,133 in 2010. Cooper broke that mark with 1,727 in 2014 before Smith eclipsed it in 2020.

A similar succession exists in the Tide’s single-game record for receiving yards. Jones set the mark with 221 against Tennessee in 2010, Cooper surpassed it with 224 against Tennessee and Auburn in 2014 and Smith took over the top spot with 274 versus LSU in 2019.

RELATED: ALABAMA’S TOP 10 NFL RECEIVERS

Blackmon won the Biletnikoff Award with Oklahoma State in 2010 and 2011. Presented annual since 1994, the Biletnikoff has one other two-time winner – Texas Tech’s Michael Crabtree in 2007 and 2008.

With 235 receptions for 3,965 yards and 46 touchdowns across his four seasons with the Crimson Tide, Smith is the SEC record-holder for receiving yards and TD receptions and ranks third on the conference career list for receptions.

At the time that Smith left Alabama for the NFL, he ranked sixth in single-season receiving yards, 23rd in career receiving yards, fifth in single-season touchdown receptions and fifth in career touchdown receptions in NCAA FBS history.

Since Alabama, Smith has had 308 receptions for 4,011 yards and 27 touchdowns in four NFL seasons for the Philadelphia Eagles. He’s one of 13 players in NFL history to reach those three figures in his first four seasons.

FOR MORE OF AL.COM’S COVERAGE OF THE NFL, GO TO OUR NFL PAGE

Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on X at @AMarkG1.