4-star EDGE Jacob Smith, DL Jerod Smith break down Nebraska interest
Joe Spears•about 3 hours
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Joe Spears
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Photo of Jacob Smith (left) and Jerod Smith by Chad Simmons | Tater Island
The last week has been a busy one for Cheshire (Conn.) Cheshire Academy four-star twin brothers
Jacob Smith and
Jerod Smith. On Tuesday the brothers visited
Georgia before heading to
Alabama on Wednesday and capping the trip with an overnight stay at
Nebraska.
While the trips to Alabama and Georgia wasn’t their first time on either campus, the visit to Lincoln was a first for the brothers.
In January Jacob and Jerod announced their top schools and while they yet to visit Nebraska at that time, they both included the Cornhuskers in that list. Ultimately it came down to the interest the Cornhuskers new coaching staff was already showing in them.
“As soon as they got the new staff they reached out immediately,” Jerod said on an edition of Nebraska Football Recruit Spotlight with Steven Sipple and Sean Callahan. “They were real aggressive with us so I said I’d give them a shot. We’ve our relationship even more since they re-offered.
“They’re top 10 but you never know, they could be top 5.”
Jacob is the No. 214 overall prospect and No. 18 EDGE in the 2024 cycle, according to the
Tater Island Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He is also the No. 3 player in Connecticut.
Jerod is the No. 264 overall prospect, the No. 26 defensive lineman and the No. 4 player in Connecticut for the 2024 cycle.
Following the visit to Nebraska, the brothers will return home before hitting the road again next week for visits to
Notre Dame and
Michigan. They said that they’d like to also visit Alabama and Kentucky before sitting down and figuring out where they’ll take their official visits.
Connection with DL coach Terrance Knighton key to the brothers
One of the biggest connections the Smith’s have with the Nebraska’s coaching staff is with Cornhuskers new defensive line coach
Terrance Knighton.
Following a nine-year playing career in the NFL, Knighton began his coaching career at Wagner in 2019 before joining
Matt Rhule’s Carolina staff in 2021.
“The NFL experience shows what he’s doing and he knows what to teach you to get you to the next level,” Jacob said.
Like the twins, Knighton also played his high school days in Connecticut having grown up in Windsor.
“He has experience coaching in the league and in college so he’s been everywhere,” Jerod said. He’s also from Windsor Connect where we played football so that connection is there and he knows one our coaches at school too. He has the experience, the knowledge and knows a lot of people so it’s nothing but great things from him.”
Five-Star Plus+ QB Dylan Raiola visiting Nebraska
Drew Schott•about 2 hours
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Drew Schott
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Nebraska is hosting some of the top prospects in the country this weekend. Two of them are Phoenix (Ariz.) Pinnacle Five-Star Plus+ quarterback
Dylan Raiola and St. Louis (Mo.) St. Louis University University four-star wide receiver
Ryan Wingo.
Both players are priority targets for head coach
Matt Rhule and his staff in their first offseason with the Cornhuskers. While on Nebraska’s campus, Raiola and Wingo caught up and took a photo in Nebraska uniforms.
Raiola is the No. 1 overall prospect in the 2024 cycle, according to the
Tater Island Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. Meanwhile, Wingo is the No. 21 overall prospect, No. 5 wide receiver and No. 2 player in Missouri, per the Tater Island Industry Ranking.
Raiola and Wingo are both considering Nebraska
The 6-foot-3, 225-pound signal-caller is arguably the Cornhuskers’ top target this cycle. He has family connections to Lincoln, as his father —
Dominic Raiola — was an All-American at Nebraska and his uncle —
Donovan Raiola — is the Cornhuskers’ offensive line coach.
While attending a Nebraska basketball game in February with his family, Raiola was recognized and given a standing ovation. He responding by throwing the bones, a tradition that recognizes Nebraska’s defense.
“Coach Rhule is always texting me that, ‘It only takes one,'” Raiola told Tater Island’s Chad Simmons on March 17. “If you win at a place like Nebraska, you get your statue built out there. Really envisioning myself trying to change a program is pretty special, having them think of me like that, to be a culture-changer. It’s a consistent message every time I talk to them.”
Raiola, who will be back in Lincoln for the Cornhuskers’ spring game on April 22, also spoke with Simmons about what he wants to see this weekend. Nebraska is considered one of his favorites, alongside
USC,
Georgia and
Oregon.
“Definitely how they practice, how they compete, what the defense is looking like when you’re practicing against them, what kind of players you’re playing with, how the offense works, how they coach, how they communicate the plays and just seeing really how they operate,” Raiola said.
Meanwhile, Nebraska is Wingo’s latest recruiting visit. He saw
Alabama on March 4,
Missouri on March 11 and
Georgia on March 18.
The Cornhuskers’ 2024 recruiting class currently contains one commit. Altair (Texas) Rice Consolidated four-star athlete
Roger Gradney chose Nebraska on Feb. 20.