'10 TNFR S Abdul Smith (Signed to Temple)

[Buffnik]

Rivals
Scout
ESPN

Perkiomen School (Pennsburg, PA) / Rutgers University (New Brunswick, NJ)

Sophomore in 2010 with a redshirt year available (3 years of eligibility remaining)

Ht: 6-foot-0
Wt: 182 lbs
40: 4.5 secs

Rivals rating (2009): 3*; #44 CB
Scout rating: (2009): 3*; #30 S
ESPN rating: (2009): 3*; #121 S

Reported Offers (2009): Rutgers (signed), Colorado (only other official visit), Auburn, Boston College, Iowa, Maryland, NC State, Penn State, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Virginia, Wisconsin

 

[Buffnik]

Rutgers bio

Prior to Rutgers: Four-year letterwinner who started his entire career on both sides of the ball for head coach Kevin Manferdini at the Perkiomen School � started at both cornerback and safety during his career on defense and started at quarterback his junior and senior seasons � versatile player also started at running back as a freshman and at wide receiver his sophomore campaign � averaged 9.1 yards per rush as a senior at quarterback, including 17 rushing touchdowns � also completed 53-of-94 passes for 664 yards and seven touchdowns � returned four kickoffs for touchdowns on the season with an average return of 80 yards per score � opponents only kicked off to him four times the entire season � 57 tackles and five interceptions on defense � led team to a 5-3 record � rated as the No. 28 cornerback nationally and the No. 7 prospect in the state of Pennsylvania by SuperPrep Magazine � Philadelphia Inquirer All-Southeastern Pennsylvania selection on defense � first Perkiomen School football player to be named to the Associated Press Class AA All-State First Team � played in the Offense-Defense All-America Bowl in Myrtle Beach, S.C. � Pottstown Mercury Defensive Player of the Year.

 

[Buffnik]

Smith Has Transfer Finalists (Scout)

Smith was granted his release from Rutgers. Colorado, Minnesota, Temple, East Carolina and Villanova are his final five. He will decide in the next week or two.

We could really use him. Smith is versatile enough to play corner, safety or nickel. So he's similar to recent CU transfer Makiri Pugh from Georgia and a couple DBs that have had a ton of recent success at CU like Benjamin Burney and Jalil Brown. I feel a lot more comfortable about our 2011 depth in our defensive backfield if Smith chooses us. That was potentially the weak link on what could be a great CU team.

 

[buff4bcs1985]

cool

 

[Darth Snow]

starting to feel like a strange twilight version of KSU round here. How many transfers are we taking in anyways?

 

[Buffnik]

starting to feel like a strange twilight version of KSU round here. How many transfers are we taking in anyways?

When you look at the numbers in the different classes, this was kind of expected. We've got 24 juniors, 13 sophomores, 13 RS-freshmen and 20 true freshmen on the 2010 roster.

Obviously, we've got 2 classes there that need their numbers bumped up a bit. Pugh went into that sophomore group, and it's still light on numbers. Smith will go into that RS-Freshmen group (which will also get bolstered by any true freshmen who play).

Since we need to add numbers for the depth chart and we have a few open scholarships, I'd rather take transfers instead of relying on JUCOs. We know what a crap shoot that can be with CU's admission standards.

I'd like to see that sophomore class up to 15 for 2011 (when they'll be juniors) and the class behind them up to 16 or 17.

 

[Darth Snow]

interesting. thx for the discussion. I've stayed out of any in depth discussion of our class situation cause I'm pretty convinced we are back down the rabbit hole once after this season.

 

[Buffnik]

interesting. thx for the discussion. I've stayed out of any in depth discussion of our class situation cause I'm pretty convinced we are back down the rabbit hole once after this season.

Maybe. But looking at how few transfers we had this offseason despite the awful 2009 season and the turmoil surrounding it... I really see a group of guys who believe in this program, are a tight knit group, and really like CU. That makes me believe that whether Hawkins finally breaks through or he doesn't and gets replaced, that it's likely that we won't suffer mass defections. I am optimistic that we've finally achieved some stability we haven't had since the early 2000s.

 

[Buffnik]

Opted for Temple. http://www.trentonian.com/articles/2010/06/22/sports/college/doc4c205242410be778270309.txt

"Temple met Smith’s two main conditions — proximity to home and the opportunity to play right away.

Smith will have to sit out this year (though he can practice with Temple), but looks to have chance to start right away at cornerback. He also said he may get a chance to show off his skills on the offensive side of the ball."