Notre Dame Football Recruiting: Will Jaylon Smith Lure In More 5-Stars?

Having a 5-star outside linebacker prospect like Jaylon Smith is going to pay dividends for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish on the recruiting trail.

Smith is one of the best prospects in the country—ranked No. 4 overall according to Rivals—and his presence alone points to just how serious Brian Kelly and the Irish are when it comes to building a great defense.

In fact, it shows the nation how serious Notre Dame is when it comes to building a national championship contender.

Smith should also be a huge selling point to other elite prospects, especially on the defensive side of the ball.

One elite defensive prospect that  Notre Dame has made an offer to is 5-star cornerback Vernon Hargreaves III. According to Tom Davis of News-Sentinel.com, both Hargreaves III and Smith were at the IMG Madden 7-on-7 Football National Championships recently, and Smith plans on talking to the corner when Hargreaves takes his visit to South Bend:

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The national scouting service 247Sports rated Smith as the second best performer at the competition, just behind Vernon Hargreaves III, a cornerback from Tampa. Smith has already verbally committed to attend Notre Dame, which ironically happens to be on Hargreaves’ short list of suitors.

“I didn’t get to talk to (Hargreaves) much,” Smith said. “I talked to him a little bit. But he is visiting Notre Dame later this month and I’m going to be up there and tell him everything about it.”

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This is the type of impact that a player the caliber of Smith can have on recruiting. Add in the fact that Notre Dame is on their way back up in the college football world and the rich tradition of the school, and it starts to become an easy sell.

A corner like Hargreaves III could really benefit from playing on the same defense of Smith. Smith is a tremendous athlete, which makes him a huge help in coverage, but he's also quick enough to get off the edge and get after the quarterback.

Any corner worth his salt dreams about rushed quarterbacks making errant throws, so I can only imagine that Hargreaves III will really think long and hard about the prospects of playing at Notre Dame after his potential chat with their stud recruit.

Will Smith lure in more 5-star recruits? That's a tricky question with a lot of factors, but I will lean towards yes.

He can start by making his best pitch to Vernon Hargreaves III.