Elite EDGE Jared Smith takes Florida State official visit

Florida State is among the group of contenders for Hoover (Ala.) Thompson four-star EDGE Jared Smith.

The Seminoles are battling some of the top brands in the nation for the 6-foot-6, 235-pounder. This week, Mike Norvell and Co. got Smith down to Tallahassee for an official visit.

@FSUFootball Thanks for a great visit @Coach_Norvell @FSUCoachJP #GoNoles 🍢 pic.twitter.com/O4ZmLJ353D

— Jared Smith (@jdotsmith_8) June 20, 2024

It’s been a busy June for Smith — who has now taken four official visits this month. After tripping to Ole Miss back in May, he’s now been on officials to South Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee and now FSU. He’s expected to round things out with an OV at USC this weekend.

Before this week, Smith was last at FSU back in the fall. The atmosphere at Doak Campbell Stadium made an impression then — and the coaching staff has since followed suit.

“The people and the people in the building attract me to want to take an official visit there,” Smith told Warchant last month. “The people around FSU — people like Coach Norvell, Coach JP — all great people. They keep it real with you no matter if it’s good or bad.”

South Carolina is currently trending heavily for Smith, according to the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine (RPM). Three picks have been logged in favor of Shane Beamer and the Gamecocks picking up another major recruiting win on the defensive line.

“Late in the spring is when I am trying to get my list down, then I want to commit in July or August,” Smith told On3 earlier this year. “All [schools] are the same right now. The most important thing for me is that home feeling. Relationships really matter to me, so that will be a big factor moving forward.”

Smith is the No. 41 overall prospect and No. 5 EDGE in the 2025 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He’s also the No. 2 player in Alabama.

Florida State Class Breakdown

Only four prospects are committed to Norvell and his staff thus far, but all four are blue-chip recruits and hail from The Sunshine State.

The quartet is split on offense and defense. The current headliner in the class is Jacksonville Raines five-star interior offensive lineman Solomon Thomas — who ranks No. 14 overall in the On3 Industry Ranking.

“I wanted to make the decision for a good little minute now,” Thomas told Warchant after his December commitment. “I actually wanted to commit the day after they had said that Florida State wasn’t going to go to the playoffs, which I was kind of upset about because I was rooting for them. … It hurt me, so I was like, ‘OK, I’m gonna make it to where they can’t count us out again.”

On the offensive side, Thomas is flanked by Jacksonville Mandarin three-star quarterback Tramell Jones. The 6-foot, 185-pound signal-caller may be just the No. 26 QB in the cycle, but his stock has continued to rise since his pledge to FSU in April 2023.

On defense, Cocoa four-star EDGE Javion Hilson is a former Alabama pledge who joined the fold in Tallahassee in January following the retirement of Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban. He is a top-50 overall recruit. Sanford Seminole four-star linebacker Ethan Pritchard is also committed and is the No. 33 player at his position.