Kaden Smith to Stanford: Cardinal Land 4-Star TE Prospect

Elite pass-catchers with tight end size and wide receiver skills are hard to find, which is why Stanford received such a critical boost Saturday when tight end Kaden Smith committed as part of its 2016 recruiting class.

Smith announced the decision on Twitter:

Credit: 247Sports

The 6’5 ½” and 235-pound Smith checks in as a 4-star prospect, per 247Sports’ composite ranking.

A number of other national schools were in on Smith’s recruitment throughout the process, including Texas, Alabama, Clemson, Florida State, LSU, Michigan and Oklahoma. 

Ultimately, Smith chose to head to Stanford, where tight ends such as Coby Fleener and Zach Ertz have thrived in recent years. 

Scout Recruiting pointed out that Smith’s versatility was key to landing so many offers, while Andy Drukarev of Rivals.com noted that teams may not be able to do any better on the recruiting trail for the 2016 class at the tight end spot:

Smith has the skill set necessary to contribute right away at the college level as a walking mismatch. He has the speed to get past most linebackers and contend with corners and safeties and the size and the physicality to simply overwhelm most collegiate defenders in the secondary.

Teams will have to pick their poison when it comes to covering Smith, which is a scary proposition for defensive coordinators in his new conference.

Look for Smith to go up and get jump balls in the red zone, pick up critical third-down conversions over the middle and provide critical blocking in the running attack. His coaching staff couldn’t ask for much more in his freshman season.

Recruit star ratings and information via 247Sports, unless otherwise noted.