Roquan Smith to Georgia: Bulldogs Land 4-Star LB Prospect

The drama surrounding linebacker prospect Roquan Smith is apparently over. The coveted recruit has chosen to play college football at Georgia. His decision provides a late boost to the Bulldogs' 2015 class.

He made the announcement by posting a picture of the signed grant-in-aid papers on Friday morning:

Smith is a 4-star prospect who ranks just inside the top 50 nationally for this year's group of incoming freshmen, according to 247Sports' composite rankings. He also rates as the No. 5 outside linebacker and one of the top recruits from the state of Georgia.

Keeping him in state is a nice recruiting victory for the Bulldogs, but it didn't come easily. He actually made a television announcement choosing UCLA on National Signing Day before deciding to reconsider his options.

Jake Reuse of UGA Sports passed along comments from the Macon County High School standout, who said things just didn't add up with the Bruins in the end. He concedes more research should have been done ahead of time:

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I felt like Coach (Jim) Mora should have hit me up and said there's potential that Coach Ulbrich may be leaving. Then, they tried to get me to go ahead and send the papers in, but I wasn't doing it. They tried to get me to send them in at 8 in the morning. Doing a lot of research, which I should have done earlier in the process and thank goodness I had more time, they don't even have my major. I was going to major in business, and the only way to get into business school out there is to be in graduate school.

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Michael Carvell of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution notes Smith is only signing the less-restrictive grant-in-aid document with his scholarship rather than an official national letter of intent. It's a protective measure, especially after the UCLA situation:

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Smith signed his scholarship or grant-in-aid papers with UGA on Friday, but has famously declined to sign a binding national letter of intent after nearly getting burned by UCLA last week. […]

Smith is finished with his recruiting after Friday's announcement, according to his coach. He will be counted as an official UGA recruit when he attends his first day of college classes this summer.

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Carvell also added the NCAA's take on Smith's situation:

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 If a prospective student-athlete only signs an athletics aid agreement then the institution has no guarantee that student will show up for enrollment while also being recruited by other coaches,” Peal told the AJC.

“This really places that athletics team in a bad position for planning for the upcoming year if there is no binding agreement. This results in no accountability on the student’s behalf but the institution is accountable for providing the athletics aid.

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What Smith lacks in size he makes up for with an explosive first step and terrific short-area quickness. Getting after the quarterback is the biggest task for edge rushers, but he should become a well-rounded linebacker if he can add some more bulk and power to his frame.

Putting the recruitment process in the rear-view mirror is a major positive. What's usually a memorable time for talented players became a bit hectic for him in the end. Now he's heading to Georgia and can focus on getting prepared for the jump to the collegiate level.