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May Recruiting thread


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Brotherly love: Will Jacob Smith join his twin, Jerod, as a Michigan commit?​


By Grace Raynor
2h ago

Jerod Smith took an unofficial visit to Michigan in late March and found himself thinking about the Wolverines for the next four weeks.
The top-300 defensive lineman out of Cheshire Academy in Connecticut felt at ease on campus and clicked with the coaches. He committed on April 25, joining what is now the nation’s top class in the 247Sports Composite.

And if Smith has his way, he won’t be showing up to campus alone come January.
“I recruit my brother every day,” Jerod said. “We’ve been teammates our whole life. Why not make it happen at the next level?”
Jerod’s brother is Jacob Smith, his fraternal twin who was born via C-section about 30 minutes after Jerod in August 2004. Jerod is the nation’s No. 286 prospect and No. 30 defensive lineman. Jacob is ranked No. 204 overall and the No. 18 edge. The 6-foot-4, 230-pound Jacob is a little quicker than his brother, Jerod is the first to admit. And with Michigan still in search of an edge rusher in this class, Jerod is hoping the Wolverines will resonate with Jacob, just as they did with him.
Jacob will take an official visit to Michigan on June 2, followed by trips to Kentucky and Nebraska the next two weeks.
“In my ideal world, he visits Michigan at the start of June and then he commits because he realizes how great of a place it is,” Jerod said.
“We’re hot right now in recruiting. So let’s just keep it rolling.”

Jacob said he will have his mind made up after he takes his official visits but will go public with a commitment when he’s ready. He originally hoped the twins could announce their decisions together around their birthday, but their parents encouraged them to make their own decisions when they were ready. Given the current landscape of college football recruiting, it can be beneficial for prospects to commit when they have the necessary clarity to secure a spot in their respective classes and not prolong what can be an arduous process.
Plus, cheering on Jerod was exciting for Jacob, who in hindsight acknowledges it might be neat for each brother to have his own moment.

“This way … we both get our own hype in a way, you know what I mean?” he said. “We’re always together still, but everyone’s expecting us to do the same thing, make decisions at the same time.”
Jacob said the opportunity to play with his brother is part of the equation.
“It’s definitely part of the factor,” he continued. “But if I hear what I need to hear at my other schools, like at another school, I’m not afraid to make that decision.”
The school that lands Jacob will be getting a nice boost to its class, albeit for different reasons. Michigan is already rolling with the nation’s top class and would only keep that momentum going. The Wolverines landed their quarterback of the future in March when five-star North Carolina native Jadyn Davis gave his long-expected verbal pledge to the program. Jacob would be the class’s 12th (and counting) blue-chipper.
Kentucky, by contrast, has just two commits in the Class of 2024. Jacob would be the highest-ranked prospect by 355 spots. And Nebraska, under new coach Matt Rhule, has six commits but no defensive linemen and just one blue-chipper.
“I like all the coaches. I like the culture(s). I like the family aspects that I feel at every school,” Jacob said. “I just like everything about it. I could be comfortable making the decision at (any) of those schools right now.”
Before transferring to Cheshire Academy for the 2023 season, the twins played at The Loomis Chaffee School, also in Connecticut. There, they routinely went up against recent Alabama signee Olaus Alinen, an offensive tackle who protected South Carolina quarterback commit Dante Reno — also a recent Cheshire transfer. Alinen is 6 feet 7 and was a top-200 player in the Class of 2023.
“(Jerod) is a powerful kid. He’s a tireless worker. He was huge for us in terms of his work ethic and his ability to kind of push our guys to put the extra work in,” Loomis Chaffee coach Adam Banks said.

“Jacob is a supremely talented kid. Works extremely hard as well, but he has a gear that you certainly didn’t see in New England a ton. I think our competitors would say the same. … (He and Alinen) had some really good battles in practice. It was awesome to see.”
Jerod said he hasn’t tried to put too much pressure on his brother as Jacob continues to navigate the recruiting process but conceded he’s still making his Michigan pitch.
“I’m just telling him about Michigan, what good stuff they have to offer and how we could dominate in the Big Ten together,” Jerod said, reflecting on what it has been like for the two of them to play together for all these years.
“It’s been awesome. It’s been fun.”
 

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