Film Room: Antwan Smith

In any form of football scouting, traits are something that must be looked at during the beginning of the evaluation process. What can a player develop into? What can separate him from the rest of the pack? Physical gifts are often worth betting on. New Kentucky commit Antwan Smith has a bundle of traits that could turn into something special.

Kentucky wrapped up an official visit with the Atlanta (Ga.) Westlake rising senior this weekend and received a commitment from the three-star prospect on Sunday. Despite playing EDGE in high school, Kentucky seems to like Smith at off-ball linebacker. Development will be needed in Lexington, but this is a prospect that could have the highest ceiling in the entire 2024 class.

Smith (6-3, 195) has posted blazing track times in the 100m (10.65), 200m (21.90), and broad jump (10’3″) as he’s one of the top athletes in the Peach State. Add that onto a solid 6-3 frame with length, and you have an intriguing young football player with high-level potential. Those physical traits show up on tape.

Explosiveness immediately jumps out

In Westlake’s scheme, Antwan Smith plays the Jack linebacker role as a stand-up defensive end that is often screaming off the edge into the backfield to make plays. The newest Kentucky commit shows some of his explosive athleticism in just about every rep.

The straight-line speed is real and shows up in special teams on kick coverage. However, playing defense is about reading and reacting. Second-level players must be twitched up and be able to change direction. Smith shows some good stop-and-star ability with his long arms giving him some margin for error.

In the QB zone read game, Smith can recognize the action and then quickly smother the quarterback. Even in the second rep where he takes a false step, his traits take over to create a win for the defense. The slim linebacker is not afraid of contact on tape. The 2024 recruit does a good job of fighting through blocks and is a sure tackler when he arrives to the ball carrier.

At the next level, Smith will have to read plays quickly and then flow to the football before making tackles. There is enough on tape to believe that he can do that. Coverage ability will be a big question, but the raw natural traits are there in spades. Now Kentucky must develop them.

Developmental prospect

Kentucky strives itself on being a recruit and develop program. Antwan Smith is a prospect that will need a lot of development in Lexington.

The three-star recruit has a frame that can add real weight. The arm length only adds to that. The speed and twitch only raise the ceiling to extreme levels. However, that could take time to develop. UK will be asking the Georgia native to play a new position in college, and there will be a learning curve.

Smith has a legit athletic pedigree with a father who played hoops at Utah State, a mother who was a track & field athlete at Miami, and an older brother who rushed for 2,267 yards over four years at Duke. That lineage along with the raw traits appear to make this a safer bet as far as projections go.

Kentucky has had success with similar undersized Will linebackers — Jordan Jones and DeAndre Square — but Smith is a bigger prospect than both. The Wildcats will be hoping he follows a similar track to Jamin Davis where 30 pounds were added in college and a three-star recruit from Georgia became a first-round pick at Kentucky.

Smith could provide value early in his career on kick coverage and as a situational edge rusher on passing downs while he develops at inside linebacker. This is a traits-first prospect, and Kentucky will be betting on its ability to develop this young prospect that is a raw player in few areas.

For the second year in a row, Kentucky has landed a versatile linebacker from the Metro Atlanta area. Smith will join Grant Godfrey in Lexington as another potential off-ball linebacker that can up the speed and range in the middle of Kentucky’s defense. The Wildcats are taking a big swing, but the end result has a chance to be a home run thanks to the intriguing traits owned by Antwan Smith.