One of the biggest offensive linemen in the 2021 class has narrowed down his potential list of suitors in his recruitment, and Tennessee has made the cut.
Colby Smith, a 6-foot-7, 290-pound offensive tackle who plays for Rockgingham County in Reidsville, North Carolina, tweeted out his list of five finalists on Thursday night, and the Vols were included along with North Carolina State, Louisville, North Carolina, and South Carolina.
Thank you to everyone that has helped me along the way to this point and THANK YOU to every single one of the schools that believed in me enough to offer me!! It means the absolute world to me! These are my final 5 schools???? pic.twitter.com/0aOGv05hW1
— Colby Smith (@BiGShoW1212) April 16, 2020
According to the 247Sports rankings, Smith is the No. 138 overall prospect and No. 19 offensive tackle in the 2021 class. Smith saw a big bump in his rankings back in late February, moving up from the 300s to inside the top 150 prospects on 247Sports. He’s right outside of four-star range in the composite rankings, coming in at No. 355 overall.
The massive offensive lineman picked up an offer from Tennessee back on January 22nd, and he made a visit to Knoxville for a Junior Day event a little over a week later on February 1st.
Not only does Smith play on the offensive line, but he plays along the defensive line for Reidsville as well. It’s expected he’ll play on offense in college, however.
Smith has a huge frame and is quite athletic for his size. He can move well and covers a lot of ground in a short period of time. He’s able to absorb pass rushers fairly well off the edge and uses his long arms to his advantage. He has good instincts when blocking for the run as well.
As a junior on defense, Smith totaled 40 tackles, five tackles for loss, two sacks, a forced fumble, a blocked kick, and an interception according to MaxPreps.
Tennessee doesn’t currently have any offensive linemen committed to them in their 2021 class, but offensive tackle figures to be a position the Vols will focus on during this cycle. With both Wanya Morris and Darnell Wright set to be juniors in 2021, adding at least one tackle during this cycle is pivotal for the Vols.
