Tag: Nigel Smith

Oklahoma receives pair of crystal ball predictions for 2024 4-star DL Nigel Smith

The Oklahoma Sooners starting to gain some 2024 recruiting momentum earning crystal ball predictions for 4-star DL Nigel Smith. From @john9williams

Oklahoma’s been firing on all cylinders on the recruiting trail since Brent Venables’ arrival. After landing in Norman last December, the Sooners 2022 recruiting class landed inside the top 10 after he and his staff were able to pull that class together by signing day. The 2023 class has the potential to finish inside the top five as they head down the stretch.

After their win over Oklahoma State, when they hosted a number of players across the next few recruiting cycles, the Sooners continue to build positive recruiting momentum.

After receiving commitments and projections for players in the 2023 class from Bedlam weekend, the Sooners are moving in the right direction for 2024 as well.

One player that seems to be trending in Oklahoma’s direction is 2024 four-star defensive lineman Nigel Smith. The Sooners received crystal ball predictions from OUInsiders’ Parker Thune and Brandon Drumm in the last few days.

Nigel Smith, from Melissa, Texas, is one of the top players in the Lone Star State, ranking inside the top 10 with ESPN, Rivals, the On3 Consensus, and the 247Sports Composite rankings. He’s the No. 6 defensive lineman in the 247Sports Composite for 2024.

Smith has had a fantastic 2021 season for Melissa, racking up 66 tackles, 20 tackles for loss, and 10 sacks. Melissa’s 10-2 on the season and in the midst of a playoff run in the Texas 5A division 2 state championships. They’ve got a regional matchup with Terrell on top for this week and, with a win, would move on to face the winner of Midlothian and South Oak Cliff in the other regional on their side of the bracket.

Nigel Smith’s size jumps off the screen. He plays big and moves well for a player of his stature. He does a good job shedding blocks and getting into the backfield. He’s a versatile defensive lineman who can play as a defensive end in a three-man front or as a three-technique defensive tackle in a four-man front. Smith displays strong hand usage, which he uses to quickly defeat blocks both on the edge or along the interior. He’s a physical player looking to punish the ball carrier.

Smith is among a group of defensive linemen the Sooners have targeted in the top 10 at the position for 2024, along with David Stone T.A. Cunningham, Williams Nwaneri, and Kamarion Franklin.

Nigel Smith’s Recruiting Profile

Projections

  • No Rivals Futurecasts predicted at this time.
  • On3’s Recruiting Prediction Machine has the Ohio State Buckeyes as the favorite for Smith.
  • Oklahoma has received a pair of crystal ball predictions for Nigel Smith since Saturday.

Film

Hudl

OU, Bedlam to play host to big names with a number of prospects descending on Norman

Oklahoma takes on in-state rival Oklahoma State for Bedlam and will be doing so with a massive group of recruits in attendance. From @thatmanbryant

There’s a fairly significant amount of importance surrounding Bedlam this year. The amount of games left between Oklahoma and Oklahoma State has been reduced significantly with Oklahoma’s impending move to the SEC on the horizon.

We may have 2023 and 2024, but the rivalry will cease as we know it in the next few years. Every game has always mattered but these last few, like the one on Saturday night, will mean a lot more.

Additionally, Oklahoma is fighting for bowl eligibility. They need one more win to participate in 2022’s bowl season.

Lastly and arguably most importantly, Oklahoma has its biggest recruiting weekend of the football season with Oklahoma State coming to town. We’ll revisit 2022 Bedlam several years from now and look back and remember it as a pivotal moment in Oklahoma’s last five to ten years.

There are some big-time names across multiple recruiting classes that will be in attendance for Oklahoma including five-star DT and Texas A&M commit David Hicks and recently dubbed 2024 five-star DT David Stone. More than 20 recruits have already committed to being in Norman, some via social media and others per OUInsider.com.

2024 top-5 DL Nigel Smith III talks about Alabama

Top 5 DL in the 2024 class speaks on expectations from Alabama

Nigel Smith III, a top 50 player in the 2024 class, is in the midst of his recruiting trail and is taking college visits throughout the course of this summer. He’s in the middle of a tour that features Rutgers, Pittsburgh, and Ohio State.

Smith comes out of Melissa High School in Texas and is the No. 4 defensive lineman and the No. 41 prospect overall in his class. He is highly sought after with the likes of Alabama and Texas taking notice.

His tour of the northeast began with Rutgers and was very complimentary of the Scarlet Knights program and had an outstanding visit as he expressed with Kristian Dyer of Rutgerswire.

Dyer also asked Smith where things stand with Alabama and Smith said, “Obviously I had a call with [head] coach [Nick] Saban; he offered me a while back. He sent the [defensive coordinator] to come check out my high school, check me out to see how I am in person. I got to be with him, had a couple of talks about what I like, what I don’t like and what that visit will be like when I go there. We’ll see, it will be my first time checking out Alabama.”

When Smith was asked what he expected from the Tide, he responded candidly saying, “Really I just expect to see them be real, be genuine. Don’t B.S. – keep it real. I don’t want a whole bunch of extra stuff. I just want to find out about that program to see if I fit. I mean, Bama is Bama. They are a really good program, a big defensive program. Definitely going to enjoy myself down there.”

The Tide may not be taking immediate action on the star defensive lineman, but he is on their radar and they’ll certainly be in the running if they continue to pursue him.

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Nigel Smith talks Rutgers football visits as well as Pittsburgh and Ohio State trips

Rutgers football hosted Nigel Smith over the weekend. Next up? Pittsburgh and then Ohio State visits.

Nigel Smith is in the midst of a busy start to the summer, the four-star defensive lineman wrapping up a northeast swing that took him to check out the Rutgers football program, then Pittsburgh and finally at Ohio State.

Ranked by 247Sports as the No. 42 player in the nation and the fifth-best defensive lineman in the class of 2024, Smith is a prized recruit. The Melissa High School (Melissa, TX) standout has some of the biggest programs in the nation lining up for visits this summer.

Which makes his swing through the northeast very curious.

Smith checked out Rutgers and Pittsburgh last week while visiting family in the area. He walked away from both programs impressed with what he saw and having forged some new relationships along the way.

As well as connecting with some familiar faces as well.

Check out what [autotag]Nigel Smith[/autotag] had to say about his time so far at Rutgers football where he interacted with head coach Greg Schiano and defensive line coach Marquise Watson. He then went to Pittsburgh over the weekend where he reconnected with assistant coach Tiquan Underwood (coach ‘Wood). Early this week, Smith will head to Ohio State and then has upcoming visits to Oklahoma, Alabama and then Miami!

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Recruits react on social media to Oklahoma Sooners Spring Game weekend

How did recruits react on social media to their experience in Norman for the Oklahoma Sooners Spring Game?

The spring game is always more than just a football game for college teams. It’s an opportunity to show off your program to not only fans but to recruits as well. For Brent Venables, it was his first opportunity to put his team and vision on display for the world’s consumption.

And what a display it was.

The Sooners hosted more than 200 former players and a long list of more than 50 recruits according to Brandon Drumm of OUInsider (VIP).

Those recruits were treated to more than 75,000 Sooners fans in attendance showing the support they have not only for the current state of the program but for the past as well.

Baker Mayfield, Oklahoma’s sixth Heisman winner, received an outpouring of love from the Sooners faithful, which had to stand out to the recruits in attendance.

Here’s some of what the recruits had to say via social media after their weekend in Norman with the Oklahoma Sooners.

Notre Dame football recruiting update after a big visitor weekend

Tons of talent was on hand this weekend in South Bend

It was a big weekend for the Irish. Not only did they get a big win against their rival opponent USC, they hosted a large contingent of recruits spanning all current classes. Check out some of their reactions from their visits to South Bend this past weekend.

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Notre Dame makes offer to defensive end recruit Kennedy McDowell

Another defensive end recruit is offered by Notre Dame.

Earlier this week, Notre Dame made an offer to strong-side defensive end recruit Nigel Smith. Now, the Irish have decided it’s time to continue shoring up that position for the future. Mike Elston had a conversation with Kennedy McDowell of Memorial in Frisco, Texas, and it led to an offer. From the sound of this tweet, it appears McDowell is serious about both the athletic and academic side of his collegiate career:

Only seven programs have made offers to McDowell, so it’s obviously early in the recruiting process for him. At this point, the other schools competing for his services are Vanderbilt, Arizona State, Kansas, FIU, Colorado and SMU.

In addition to playing football, McDowell recently was a state qualifier in the 110-meter hurdles. It’s safe to say that whoever lands him is going to be getting quite an athlete. Opposing offenses are going to have to keep a close eye on him because this is a kid meant to compete at the next level and make big plays to boot.

Notre Dame gives offer to defensive end recruit Nigel Smith

The Irish are after a young recruit to shore up their defensive line.

We’re now at the point where programs start making offers to recruits who have completed their freshman season. Notre Dame now is one of them. The Irish’s latest offer takes them to Melissa, Texas, where they are pursuing strong-side defensive end Nigel Smith:

Over the previous few minutes of making the Notre Dame offer public, Smith also announced he had received offers from North Texas and UTSA. While those programs obviously would keep him closer to home, neither Conference USA school has anything close to the history or reputation of Notre Dame. Of course, it will take more than that to convince Smith to come to South Bend.

Notre Dame already has a pair of strong-side defensive ends coming in for the 2022 season in Tyson Ford and Aiden Gobaira. They’ll also add a weak-side defensive end in Darren Agu. Here’s hoping they will be good mentors for Smith by the time he arrives if that’s indeed what happens.

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