What should Penn State fans know about 4-star flip Cam Smith?: Commit impact

Penn State picked up commitment No. 24 in the Class of 2025 Friday. It did so via a flip. Four-star Salem, N.J., St. Joe’s Prep linebacker Cam Smith originally selected Duke over the Nittany Lions and others back in February. However, following a recent visit to campus, he is changing gears and is now a part of head coach James Franklin’s latest recruiting class. In this commitment impact breakdown, get to know Smith and what he brings to the Nittany Lions.

1. How it started

Smith has long been a top target of many college football recruits. Temple was the first program to extend an offer, doing so in October 2021. Penn State would eventually become the seventh program to enter the mix, doing so in May 2022. Nearly 20 schools would throw their hats into the ring between the linebacker’s freshman, sophomore, and junior seasons.

2. Who else was involved?

Smith never narrowed his sizable list of suitors before committing to the Blue Devils. The 6-foot, 200-pound prospect did take plenty of visits. Those gave insight into the schools he had the most interest in. He visited Penn State more than any other school. Rutgers also hosted him multiple times. And the list of schools that had him on campus at least once includes Maryland, West Virginia, Boston College, and Duke.

3. Path to a decision

Smith’s recruitment went into overdrive in early February. Fresh off a junior day visit to Penn State, he told Blue-White Illustrated on Feb. 4 that he was working on narrowing his list of suitors and that Rutgers and the Nittany Lions were on him the hardest.

“I’m in the process of trying to shorten my list,” Smith said. “I think I’ve shortened it a little bit more [following recent visits]. Right now, I would say I have a top eight or maybe a top ten. But as the summer goes on, I’m going to try to shorten that list more and try to make a decision before the fall. At the latest, midseason.”

However, just four days later on Feb. 8, he committed to Duke. The decision was tied, at least in part, to his longstanding relationship with former Penn State coaches Manny Diaz and Gabe Infante, who are now the Blue Devils’ head coach and associated head coach respectively. But, the Lions landing Alex Tatsch on Feb. 4 and Dayshaun Burnett on Feb. 7 seemingly shut Smith out with DJ McClary also on board. McClary would later flip to Rutgers, which opened up a spot for Smith, and it was one that still existed despite the Lions landing LaVar Arrington II earlier this summer.

Penn State and Smith continued to talk, culminating in a Lasch Bash visit in late July. Both sides became comfortable with the flip, which happened nearly two weeks later.

4. What is Penn State getting in Smith?

Smith had an impressive first season at St. Joe’s Prep. He tallied 72 tackles, 4.5 sacks, and one interception on the Hawks’ PIAA Class 6A title-winning team. He is a technically sound defender who will have every chance of continuing the ‘Linebacker U’ legacy at Penn State.

“The stuff they teach has definitely helped me improve,” Smith said about his junior season improvement at St. Joe’s. “I’m better at using my hands and getting off blocks. I’m better at reading now. Things like where to take the gap and how tight to take the gap. I’ve gotten better at when to spill and seeing [offensive linemen pull]. So, I feel like I improved at all of it.”

It’s evident on tape. And, what should excite Penn State fans is that he has another year to further refine things at the high school level before getting to State College.

5. What has he said about the Nittany Lions?

Smith has long been extremely complimentary about Penn State. Despite changes on both the recruiting and coaching staffs, the two sides have kept a strong relationship throughout the process, culminating in Wednesday’s flip.

“I like the academic stuff they do,” Smith showed BWI. They showed us what they make the freshmen do every day,” Smith said. “I’m an academic person. That’s one of my big factors when I’m looking at different schools. So, just seeing how they handle that, I really appreciated it.”

Head coach James Franklin has been in the thick of this recruitment, as well. And, a February message to the linebacker certainly resonated.

“He was talking about how other schools may try to buy you, but are they going to develop you and make you into the best player and man you can be? At Penn State, it’s all about development for them,” Smith said. “I like development. I like academics, like I said. So I really appreciated hearing that. I like that a lot.”

6. More on the Penn State Class of 2025

Penn State now has 24 verbal commitments in this cycle. It is a top 20 class in the On3 Industry Team Rankings at this juncture. The group is made up of 13 future defenders and 11 who are projected to play on offense at the next level. Besides Smith, three other members of the class are currently ranked as linebackers. Latrobe, Pa., and Pittsburgh natives Alex Tatsch and Dayshaun Burnett are four-stars in the On3 Industry Rankings, while California prospect LaVar Arrington II carries a three-star rating. It’s possible and perhaps even likely that Burnett ends up being a defensive lineman at the next level.