Rancho Santa Margarita (Calif.) Santa Margarita junior athlete Jaion Smith is a talented two-way player and has flashed for us the last two weeks at local 7v7 events.
Smith is a talented running back who has played in 26 games his first two years of high school ball. He was the teams featured back on last season’s CIF and State Championship team, rushing for 896 yards and eight touchdowns.
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At the Battle of the Beach and South County Classic 7v7 tournaments the last two weekends, Smith worked out at linebacker and looked very good. He’s a plus athlete who moves really well and covers a lot of ground. He makes plays on the football, is natural in coverage and plays a physical game as well.
On the recruiting front, Smith has a family connection to USC and the Trojans are in a good spot in his recruitment.
“Jaylin Smith is my cousin so USC is definitely standing out for me,” Smith said. “He’s someone I always looked up to so when I got that offer from USC, it was like a dream come true.
“I grew up USC fan too but that’s not going to play a role in my decision. I have to make the best move for me, more of a busines decision but USC is definitely up there for me now.”
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Kansas and Minnesota have offered and are making a strong push as well.
“Kansas has been really aggressive recruiting me,” Smith said. “That’s my most recent offer and I’m developing a good relationship with coach Wallace, the RB coach.
“Coach Mo (Ibrahim) at Minnesota has been talking to me a lot too and I’m very comfortable with him. I like their program and how they run the ball. Both schools have invited me to come out for a game in the fall and that’s something I’m interested in.”
UCLA hasn’t offered yet but is recruiting Smith.
“I love the new coaches at UCLA,” Smith said. “I went to a spring practice and loved it there. They haven’t offered yet but I definitely have interest and want to get to a game this fall. If they were to offer, I would definitely give them a hard look.
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“Right now, I’m in no hurry to make a decision. I want to play out my junior season and see what other schools jump in. Then hopefully I can take a few official visits and commit sometime next Spring.”
