Roquan Smith Commits to Georgia After Reopening Recruitment

Roquan Smith has committed to Georgia, after initially choosing UCLA. The linebacker reopened his recruitment after coaching changes on the Bruins' staff.

Continue for updates. 

---

Smith Commits to Georgia

Friday, Feb. 13

Roquan Smith took to Instagram to announce his decision to attend Georgia, with the caption:

"

To begin with, I would like to thank God for making all things possible after all, it is through him that I was even blessed with the talents to play football. Secondly, I would like to thank my family and coaches for their never ending love. Through these strenuous times , they have never left my side and have always stayed true. Their loyalty is not something that can be bought only earned. But more importantly I would like thank my teammates. When I'm playing with these guys, it's not about the accolades or the elaborate stats. It's about the value of leadership, brotherhood, and team work... things I will forever cherish. As you could imagine it's been tough lately , But I am relieved to say that I am officially committed to The University Of Georgia 100%. Proverbs 16:3 says that if you commit to the lord in whatever you do, he will establish your plans. Jeremiah 29:11 says that God knows the plans he has for my life and I will trust in him through any and everything as I have always done. Once again , thank you so much to all my true supporters and my community. I will make you nothing short of proud.

"

Image credit: 247Sports

---

Smith to Make Decision on Friday

Wednesday, Feb. 11

Jake Rowe of 247Sports reported on Wednesday that Smith's decision will come on Friday. Rowe added the following details:   

"

Macon County linebacker Roquan Smith tells Dawgs247 that he will make a decision on where he will play college football on Friday. He also says that he will be signing financial aid paperwork to the school of his choice but he will not be signing a Letter of Intent. He will choose from Georgia, Michigan, Texas A&M, and UCLA, but a specific time has not yet been given for the announcement.

"

On Tuesday, Michael Carvell of the Atlanta Journal Constitution reported that Smith had no timetable for making a decision, according to Smith's high school coach, Larry Harold:

"

The original plan was for Smith to take around a week to choose again among his four finalists, which also included Michigan and Texas A&M.

Macon County coach Larry Harold told the AJC on Monday that Smith now has “no timetable” on selecting a school, but that he “doesn’t expect it to drag out too much longer” with his star player.

"

Carvell also noted that Smith wouldn't sign a letter of intent wherever he wound up choosing, according to Harold:

"

“He’s not going to sign a letter of intent,” Harold said. “The reason why is because what he went through last week. This just gives us flexibility in case something else unexpectedly happens again.”

How do the colleges feel about that? Harold said he gave the news to all four finalists. “Of course, they all said that’s fine. But they were like ‘What does this mean?’ They said this has never been done before, to the best of their knowledge. It could set a precedent. They had to do some research, but they said it indeed could be done and that they’re fine with it.

“I guess you’ll really be able to tell if a coach or college really wants a kid if they’ll agree to do this – letting a kid come to their campus this summer without signing an LOI.”

“Again, we’re doing it this way after what happened last week. I don’t know where this is all going to go. I guess God put Roquan in this position for a reason. Maybe it was meant to help educate other kids about these types of situations.”

 

"

---

Smith Re-Opens Recruitment After Choosing UCLA

Wednesday, Feb. 4

Roquan Smith is one of the truly intriguing linebackers and athletes that will hit college football in the 2015 season. After initially announcing his commitment to UCLA, Jake Reuse of Rivals.com noted that Smith "has not reached his final decision" and hasn't signed his letter of intent. He is now reopening his search after news that Smith's lead recruiter Jeff Ulbrich is leaving UCLA, per 247Sports' Rusty Mansell. 

Ron Seibel of Macon.com reported Ulbrich is officially joining the Falcons. Seibel previously reported on Smith's search being reopened, while Reuse and Rivals' Trent Smallwood provided quotes from Smith regarding his uncertainty:

Andy Staples of Sports Illustrated provided comments from UCLA head coach Jim Mora, who spoke about the team's efforts to retain Ulbrich:

The talented linebacker from Macon County High School in Montezuma, Georgia, is considered a 4-star prospect by 247Sports' composite rankings. He's also rated as the 47th-best recruit in the country, the fifth-best outside linebacker and the fifth-best player from the state of Georgia.

His high school coach Larry Harold went into detail how Smith currently views his options per Chip Towers of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

"

It’s not an open recruitment really, it’s just the same four schools and he’s going to take a week or so to decide. He’s going to take this weekend off, spend time with his family and relax, be a teen-ager. And then next week maybe he’ll start calling some coaches again and rehash it all.

"

Those four schools are UCLA, Georgia, Texas A&M and Michigan.

Standing at 6'2" and weighing 205 pounds, Smith will need to add some bulk in college to deal with the bigger offensive linemen, tight ends and fullbacks in the college game, but his athleticism and tenacity will serve him well.

Smith is an aggressive linebacker who possesses good range and athleticism. Shows a well-rounded skill set and looks to have good upside with continued physical development.

Without question, Smith will need to be a gym rat early in his career to solidify his frame.

But he's a great fit on the weak side in a 4-3 scheme, where he can he use his athleticism and burst to make plays from sideline to sideline. Given his speed and dexterity, he should be able to stay in the game in nickel and perhaps even dime formations, prowling on the underneath throws.

He should also be able to hold his own in man coverage against running backs and tight ends, making him a true three-down linebacker in time.

How he plays going downhill against the run will make or break him, of course, but he doesn't seem like the type of player who will take his talent for granted. Smith could end up being quite the playmaker if he continues to develop his overall game.