Staying home: Local DB Cam Smith commits to Gamecocks
Blythewood (S.C.) Westwood four-star cornerback Cameron Smith saw everything he needed in a program right down the road from home.
The 6-foot-1, 175-pound Smith committed to South Carolina Friday following his team's season opening win over Lugoff-Elgin.
"It's right down the street and always the school I wanted to go to as a kid," Smith told GamecockCentral.com. " T-Rob was talking about all the pro DBs he's coached and how I could come in and play as a freshman. Jaycee (Horn) is coming in and playing as a freshman so I could come in and play that role too."
Smith chooses the Gamecocks over finalists Georgia and Tennessee and also held offers from Florida State, Georgia Tech, North Carolina, Wake Forest, West Virginia and Maryland among many others.
South Carolina defensive coordinator Travaris Robinson and head coach Will Muschamp were his two primary recruiters in Columbia. Even though Smith announced his choice publicly on Friday night, he had been silently committed for a while.
"There was one morning where I just woke up one morning and I was thinking about it and I just called Coach Muschamp and told him. I could hear it in his voice that he was excited. He said it made his day."
He is the Gamecocks' second major cornerback commitment in as many days after Georgia Military College's DJ Daniel shockingly committed to Carolina on Thursday.
Smith's pledge is far less surprising as he grew up a fan of the program, but has consistently said he just wanted to be sure before deciding after the Gamecocks offered him in June.
Rivals.com ranks Smith as the No. 3 prospect in South Carolina and the No. 37 cornerback in the 2019 class.