Georgia keeps top CB home, Chris Smith commits
Not too long ago, College Park (Ga.) Hapeville Charter cornerback Chris Smith cut his list down to six schools. Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, Ohio State and South Carolina were his finalists. Now he is down to one.
Smith turned 17 Monday and this birthday will be one he remembers. It is the day he announced his committed to the Georgia Bulldogs.
The 6-foot, 165 pound rising senior chose the in-state school over Michigan and Ohio State. About a month ago he was leaning toward heading north to Ann Arbor for college, but after spending April 22 in Athens he knew Georgia had everything he wanted.
"It really hit me Georgia was my school after my latest visit there," Smith said. "My mom and my family were cool with me going to any of my top six schools, so that was kind of a clean slate for me, but Georgia is it for me.
"After visiting Georgia for their spring game, I knew that was where I wanted to go. All of the schools on my list are great schools and Georgia is one of the best, so why not go right down the road and play for the in-state school? They have everything I am looking for."
Smith had that feeling when he was inside Sanford Stadium on G-Day. He knew that afternoon he was going to be a Dawg. Top prospects like Smith search for the feeling, and he got it that day.
"It just clicked for me," Smith said. "I get a lot of love from the coaches and I love the feeling I have when I am there. When I was there for the spring game, I felt like that is where I belong. The coaches make me feel wanted and I just feel at home there. It hit while I was there on G-Day that I was ready to commit to Georgia."
Most are finding out Monday May 1 about Smith's decision, but Georgia head coach Kirby Smart found out a week earlier. The head coach only shared the news with one other person.
"I called coach Smart Monday night (April 24) and we had a nice little conversation at first, then I told him that I was accepting my offer from Georgia and committing to the G," said Smith.
"He was excited about it and he told me that was some of the best news he had gotten in some time. He told coach [Mel] Tucker (defensive coordinator) about it and both were very excited about the news.
"I know Georgia has been struggling a little in recruiting, so I wanted to give coach Smart some good news, and we all were very excited about my commitment."
These are exciting times now for Smith and his family, but like it is for most, the recruiting process was tough for Smith. He had over 30 offers and numerous schools were in pursuit, so he was constantly hearing from college coaches, and there was a lot of pressure to make the right decision. Now that his decision is made, he is already feeling less stressed about recruiting.
"It feels good to be committed," Smith said. "I will be able to go into my senior year committed to Georgia with no pressure in recruiting and I am happy about that. I can focus on my team, my school and working toward that state championship with my brothers.
"It feels great to be committed to Georgia. I feel like it is going to be a great experience for me at Georgia and I cannot wait to start recruiting."
Smith already has some big names in mind that he plans to recruit to play with him in between the hedges.
"Trey Dean, Kearis Jackson, Marquez Ezzard, Justin Fields and Kyler McMichael are just a few guys I would love to play with at Georgia," Smith said. "I have spent a lot of time with those guys and I will now be talking to them about Georgia.
"Some of those guys are close friends and I will be working on them. I know Georgia is recruiting them all, I know Georgia wants them all and I hope I can help us get them."
Jake Fromm and Richard LeCounte were the leaders of the 2017 recruiting class that finished No. 3 in the country. Smith saw what they did and how they were constantly recruiting. He wants to take that role in 2018.
"I do not want our 2018 class to be weak; it needs to look like the one in 2017 did, so I am going to work hard to help with that," Smith said. "I am going to try to recruit some guys. I want to become that leader and I will do all I can to help us get the right guys that put Georgia in position to win a national championship.
"I cannot wait to get there and to play with and against the best players in the country. I want to get others top players excited about Georgia the way I am."
