NC State commitment analysis: 3-star QB Jacob Smith
NC State football picked up a commitment from Jacob Smith Tuesday afternoon. The quarterback from Pfafftown (N.C.) Reagan High is a long time member of Wolfpack baseball’s 2026 class and emerged over the past year as a Power Four football prospect.
He picked up an offer last year and had previously named NC State his leader. UNC and Duke both extended scholarships him as well, and he camped at a few of the top programs in the country this summer, but the Pack was always the team to beat in his recruitment.
Smith is the first commit of the program’s 2026 class, starting off the cycle as an in-state pledge amongst the most talented North Carolina recruiting class in recent memory.
The On3 Industry Ranking considers him the No. 627 recruit in the country, the No. 50 quarterback nationally and the No. 24 prospect in the state.
What’s next for NC State’s ’26 quarterback board
Five-star quarterback Faizon Brandon was the program’s No. 1 priority under center for this cycle, but the staff has always prioritized Smith as well. When the Greensboro (N.C.) Grimsley High signal-caller committed to Tennessee, NC State quickly filled that spot in class.
Smith joined the Pack Tuesday after planning on stopping by Clemson, Florida, LSU and Alabama this summer. He was one of the first class of 2026 quarterbacks to pick up an offer from the Wolfpack. NC State would not take another signal-caller commit at this time, per a source.
Breaking down Smith as a quarterback prospect
The Wolfpack quarterback commit has definitely grown physically over the past year after picking up his NC State offer and stands 6-3, 200 pounds. He struggled with accuracy as a sophomore, completing 47.4 percent of his passes for 1,498 yards, 14 touchdowns and 5 interceptions.
Most of his highlights from last fall are downfield passes. He shows off impressive pocket mobility and can connect on deep balls even when he’s throwing off platform. Smith’s overall velocity is solid, but the ball speed when he’s on the move is what jumps out on the tape.
The highlights are impressive, and he has solid arm strength, but the stats leave some improvement to be desired in his junior season playing in one of North Carolina’s more competitive conferences. Smith struggled at times during camp this year with accuracy, but again, he’s a sophomore and has two more seasons to develop. His velocity also looks better on game film than it did in a camp setting, which is understandable when throwing to wide receivers he did not have any chemistry with.
His high school offense is almost entirely play action an what looks like a run-pass-option. It will be interesting to see how he adapts to NC State’s scheme at the next level.
Smith racked up 159 rushing yards and 2 more touchdowns last fall. Despite those numbers, he looks very mobile on tape, and Reagan put him in read option situations pretty frequently in the red zone. The quarterback also does not shy away from contact as a rusher.
How good is Smith at baseball?
The quarterback will definitely play baseball with the Wolfpack. In multiple interviews over the past year, Smith has reiterated that he does not plan on signing with an MLB team out of high school if he does hear his name called on draft day. He wants to play college football at NC State.
Smith went 5-1 in 7 appearances on the bump as a sophomore for a 22-5 Reagan squad. He also plays both middle infield and third base.
He committed to the Wolfpack baseball program in middle school and has a great connection with the staff. Perfect Game clocked his fastball at 88 miles per hour July 6, which puts him the 98.21 percentile of the 2026 class. He also deployed a 77 mph curveball, a 79 mph changeup and a 77 mph slider.
The quarterback’s sophomore season highlights
Class of 2026 Commitment Timeline
Aug. 6, 2024 — On3 Industry three-star quarterback Jacob Smith, Pfafftown (N.C.) Reagan High
Commits By Position
Quarterback — 1
Commits By State
North Carolina — 1
The post NC State commitment analysis: 3-star QB Jacob Smith appeared first on On3.
