4-Star OLB Prospect Zihir Lacewell Commits to Rutgers Scarlet Knights

Rutgers added an athletic playmaker to their future defense Tuesday when outside linebacker Zihir Lacewell committed to their 2018 recruiting class. 

Lacewell announced the commitment in a video for Scout.com. 

Lacewell, who is 6'3" and 199 pounds, is a 4-star prospect, per Scout, and the No. 254 overall player, No. 21 outside linebacker and No. 1 outside linebacker in the state of New York in his class.

He drew plenty of interest from programs in the general vicinity, and Syracuse, Temple and Rutgers were early inclusions on Scout's list of interested schools.

Hudl shared a look at some of his playmaking abilities:

Lacewell also played wide receiver at the high school level, and Brian Dohn of Scout said he was better at that position than linebacker. However, Dohn clarified "his ability to run and change direction, mixed in with his frame, makes him a stellar prospect" when analyzing his future linebacking skills.

Dohn provided a complete breakdown of Lacewell's game and said "his physical talent is off the charts" even though he still had some learning to do. He will ideally do that learning at the college level and tap into his overwhelming potential.

His speed and athleticism immediately jump out, which makes sense considering he was a wide receiver. Those traits allow him to blitz off the edge, pursue running backs from sideline to sideline and even drop back into coverage if needed.

Lacewell brings that versatility and talent to a Rutgers program that needs to quickly improve its defense. The Scarlet Knights were a mere 116th in the nation in points allowed per game in 2016, which is a total that will not allow them to consistently compete with the likes of Ohio State, Michigan and Penn State in the coming years.

Lacewell gives them an elite athlete who can help them bolster that defense with his blitzing and overall athleticism. While the Scarlet Knights still have ground to make up in the Big Ten, adding players like this is an ideal way to chip away at that gap.