The Smith Twins, Jerod and Jacob, Flip from Michigan to Kentucky

It’s a Grove Street Party in Lexington. A couple of Cats are staying home. Jerod and Jacob Smith, twin brothers currently enrolled at Corbin High School, backed off their verbal commitments to Michigan and announced they will play football for their Old Kentucky Home. The announced the news shortly after Corbin knocked off Frederick Douglass 6-0 in the Kroger KSR Game of the Week.

The brothers began their high school careers in Somerset, then transferred to a prep school in Connecticut for two football seasons. Playing alongside other Power Five talents, they blew up on the recruiting trail. They’re back in Southeastern Kentucky for their final year of high school football at Corbin, not far from Kentucky’s campus.

Each player is a four-star talent in the On3 Industry Ranking, a proprietary algorithm that compiles ratings and rankings from all four primary recruiting media services. Jerod Smith is a 6-foot-2.5, 255-pound defensive lineman ranked as the No. 255 player in the country. Jacob Smith is two inches taller, about 20 pounds lighter and he plays as EDGE as the No. 276 player in America.

The Wildcats’ 2024 recruiting class now has is cleaning up in the state of Kentucky. Following the addition of the Smiths, the Cats have commitments from the top four seniors in the state, joining QB Cutter Boley and IOL Aba Selm. Covington Catholic TE Willie Rodriguez (No. 6) and Taylor County IOL Hayes Johnson (No. 9) have also pledged their allegiance to the Wildcats.

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Another Kentucky Recruiting Win over Michigan

There was a stretch where many fans felt like Kentucky just couldn’t beat Michigan for a recruit. Now the shoe is on the other foot. The Wolverine message boards are melting down because Vince Marrow has their number.

The Big Dog has been consistently battling Steve Clinkscale on the trail. Another Youngstown native that previously worked on Mark Stoops’ staff, Coach Clink won a few head-to-head battles. Cameron Calhoun and Karmello English were noteworthy Michigan additions in 2023, but things haven’t gone his way as of late. In addition to the flip of the Smith twins, Marrow beat Michigan for four-star Cincinnati cornerback Terhyon Nichols. The Wildcats could tally another one if they’re able to get Brian Robinson on board.

The latest big move is more evidence that Kentucky is fishing in the right waters by beating traditional powerhouses to recruit at a Top 25 level.

What the Smith Twins are Bringing to the BBN

It’s not just a symbolic recruiting victory for Kentucky. Jacob Smith has some juice on the edge of the defense and gives Brad White another Blue Chip talent to mold. Jerod appears to fit what Kentucky wants out of its 3-technique defensive tackle, but I’ll let his brother describe what he does best.

“(Jerod) is powerful, strong, has a good get off and gets to the point,” Jacob told On3. “We complement each other well. If the first one doesn’t get the tackle, the second one is.”

The twins spoke with On3’s Hayes Fawcett to share why they decided to join the Big Blue Nation.

“The reason I chose Kentucky is because I wanted to play in the SEC and I wanna be able to be developed and play at the next level,” Jerod said. “Playing in the SEC will ultimately better prepare me for the next step in making the NFL. Another reason was I wanna stay back home and play for my state. I wanna be able to play in front of my family. Another reason I chose Kentucky was my relationship with the staff. It felt more like family to me. Ultimately I felt that Kentucky was the best choice for me to get where I wanna be in life.”

Jacob stated his reason for committing to the Wildcats as well.

“I came home to my state and realized that I need to stay here, for the family and for the people.”