Florida commit Ja’Bois Smith took a hit in the latest Rivals update, but the drop says more about summer camp football than it does about what he can do on a real field.
Rivals moved the Georgia linebacker from No. 236 to No. 273 overall in its updated class of 2027 rankings. That comes after 247 also slid him from No. 177 to No.
- Smith had been a top-150 linebacker when Florida landed his commitment back in May.
None of that should come as a shock if you’ve watched how these summer rankings tend to work. Camp season usually rewards the fastest, flashiest players in controlled settings, and Smith doesn’t sound like the kind of prospect who lives off that style of evaluation.
When he committed to Florida, the evaluation of Smith was clear about what makes him dangerous on film:
“Smith is interesting because he hasn’t done a ton of the camps that would boost his ranking even more, but what he puts on film makes him look like a linebacker who could create some real mismatch problems for opponents down the road. What stands out with Smith is that even when he doesn’t have a full head of steam to greet a running back in the hole, his power seems effortless to bring guys down, and there is no struggle from him to put guys on the ground.
But he also doubles as a running back, and while he doesn’t exactly have breakaway speed, teams just seem incapable of dragging him down or having any answer for him. There are legit times he will plow through four players who all seem helpless in trying to tackle him.”
That’s the kind of player summer workouts can miss. A linebacker who brings guys down without much effort, and a runner who can run through multiple tacklers, isn’t always going to pop in a setting built around space and speed.
So while the rankings have dipped, Florida fans probably don’t need to read too much into it. Smith’s profile still points to a player who could be a problem once he gets to campus.
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