re: Class of 2018 Recruiting MEGATHREAD: So Long Old Friend Edition

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Eddie Smith in the final days of his recruitment 

Eddie Smith is down to Alabama, Mississippi State and Tennessee. He took official visits to all three schools this month and is set to announce his decision on National Signing Day this Wednesday.

Smith, a 3-star cornerback from Salmen High School (Slidell, La.), most recently visited Tuscaloosa, Ala., last weekend. It was his first time to visit Alabama. It lived up to his expectations.

“Having an offer from Alabama is a dream come true,” Smith told SEC Country. “Being out there and seeing it firsthand was great. They have a great coaching staff. I loved everything.”

The top thing Smith was looking forward to seeing on his visit to Alabama was whether the school had that “family environment” that lots of recruits talk about. He said it was one of the first things he noticed when he got on campus. Smith said the coaches bond with each other like they’re brothers. He also got that feeling around the players and he feels like the team is a brotherhood.

“The thing that stood out to me the most was how everything is just one unit,” Smith said. “Everyone works together. The coaching staff works with the academic staff. They have a bond with the medical staff. It’s one unit there. Nothing is spaced out.”

Smith said he left Tuscaloosa with all the answers to the questions he had going into the visit. Smith brought both of his parents on the trip, and they, too, have no more questions about the school.

It also helps that Smith had a preexisting relationship with new defensive backs coach Karl Scott. One of Smith’s first offers was from Texas Tech, which is where Scott was before getting hired to replace Derrick Ansley, who left for the Oakland Raiders.

“He’s a great coach. He knows a lot,” Smith said of Scott. “It was great catching up with him because it had been a while before we talked before he got to Alabama. He wants me to go there pretty badly.”

Not only does Scott want Smith to go to Alabama but coach Nick Saban does, too. Smith said he spent ample 1-on-1 time with Saban, including a ride in one of the coach’s cars. The Louisiana native, along with 5-star corners Patrick Surtain Jr., Tyson Campbell and Olaijah Griffin, is one of the team’s top defensive back targets.

The opportunity to play for Saban is what’s most appealing to Smith.

“Coach Saban has been coaching for a long, long time, so you know you’re going to be coached by the best in the business,” Smith said. “To know that he would be coaching me every day is big time. I know for a fact that he would make me a better player than what I already am. I feel like he could develop me. He’s the best coach, and to have the best coach coaching you definitely gives them an advantage.”

Smith also got to see the side of Saban that not many see on a day-to-day basis. Smith’s father’s post on Saban doing the Cupid Shuffle went viral. That video was filmed during an event that only the families of the recruits attended, so Smith didn’t see Saban’s dancing skills up close.

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