Blue Chips: Parents of Jacob and Jerod Smith go in-depth on Michigan visit
I recently caught up with Jerod Sr. and Susan Smith, parents of Michigan defensive line commit Jerod Smith and EDGE target Jacob Smith, to get their thoughts on their weekend trip to Ann Arbor.
Here are some highlights from the interview.
On their overall thoughts on the visit:
Susan: “What stood out to me was the involvement of everybody. It was all hands on deck. Coach (Mike) Elston was with us literally almost the entire time. I really felt like they made Jacob a priority. I liked the personal touch of getting to talk to Coach (Jim) Harbaugh for a long time about family, his career and where we’re from. It wasn’t just focused on football. He was very open and honest with answers to any questions we had for him. It was just a really personable visit. That stood out to me.”
Jerod Sr.: “The itinerary had our conversation with Coach Harbaugh scheduled for 30 minutes. It lasted about an hour and 45 minutes before he realized he was late to his son’s basketball game. To talk to Coach Harbaugh for that long and not have any dead space or run out of conversation was pretty interesting. It wasn’t all football. It was jokes and him talking about his family. He has a large family like we have a large family, so we had some things in common. It was a really good conversation with a little bit about football.”
On the Michigan coaching staff:
Susan: “They know what they are doing. They put together a presentation of all their stats, and the proof is in the pudding. They showed us what they do and how they develop their players. Looking at how many players on the defensive side of the ball they put into the league is impressive. I think they sent eight or nine to the NFL this year. That’s unheard of. The coaching staff is amazing. They are all very down to earth and personable. They made us feel comfortable.”
Jerod Sr.: “Coach Dylan (Roney) is a young soul. During practice, he was very strict and the kids respected him. At dinner, he was very relaxed with the players. I thought was pretty neat. The players called him by his nickname and cut up with him. But at practice, they treated him the same way they did Coach Elston and Coach (Jesse) Minter. They listened to instructions he gave. I thought that structure was pretty neat because it’s hard to do those things with someone that’s just a few years older than you and has a lot in common with you. Coach Roney has a really good boundary with the players. My highlight was Coach (Ben) Herbert. It was like flashlights went off in the boys’ heads. I truly think that’s why Jerod committed. To see the way he builds his guys and gets them ready and has injury prevention is awesome. Jerod doesn’t want to put on unnecessary weight, and Coach Herb’s thing is I don’t care about how much you weigh. I care about getting your fat mass down and muscle mass up. I saw that in his players in the before and after photos. That was extremely impressive.”
On the campus, facilities, environment, etc.:
Susan: “The campus is huge. I didn’t realize it was that big. I should have known since it’s the University of Michigan. It is a huge school, but when they find their niche, it’s going to be more personable. I was impressed. They have new, impressive buildings. It looks like they are updating the campus all the time. I really enjoyed the law area with the historic, classical building and library. Ann Arbor is a beautiful city. I had never been to Michigan, so it was a great first impression. I’m pretty comfortable with Jerod going there.”
Jerod Sr.: “Not only is the campus beautiful, it doesn’t feel like a campus. The entire time, I couldn’t tell if we were in downtown Ann Arbor or on campus. It would knock off the ‘I’m stuck at school’ attitude if I were a kid going there. Coach Dylan kept explaining to me east campus, west campus, downtown. The campus has a really good layout. They had four main buildings that were all beautiful. All the restaurants will provide good outlets for the kids. All the restaurants know the football players and greet them. Every time we ate with the team, it was first name basis. We didn’t visit him this time, but last time, Perry (at the Brown Jug) knew who the boys were and made them feel like they were his great-grand kids. He made it known that they could go there and relax if any stressful events occurred. He would be a friend. It’s a neat atmosphere that the town has created for the players.”
On the culture at Michigan:
Susan: “I think it’s pretty evident. It’s pretty open door. Even when we were in the coach’s office, it was like ‘hey, good morning coach.’ People are not shut off in their offices. You can see the camaraderie between the coaches and the players. It’s different. I don’t think I’ve seen that at most of the other places. That was nice. We were lucky enough to be there for the ring ceremony. Seeing how they interact is really nice to see. It makes you feel more comfortable and more at home.”
Jerod Sr.: “There were a few things that really sold that to me. Our lunch got pushed back right before our meeting, and Coach Harbaugh said ‘just bring it in the office.’ We sat there and had an official meeting with Coach Harbaugh and ate pizza. We looked like the typical family. Everybody’s hands were greased on the pizza sauce. It wasn’t like we can’t eat anymore because we have to talk to Coach Harbaugh. Someone came through the office we couldn’t see, and Coach Harbaugh was like ‘hey, is that you making all that noise out there?’ They had a 20-second joke amongst each other without the guy even stepping in the office. I though that was cool. You don’t have to be on tippy toes. The other thing I saw that was neat was at the ring ceremony, he allowed Coach Herbert to close the day. Normally, something of that nature, the head coach is going to closenit out, but he allowed Coach Herbert to give his motivational speech to the kids. That speaks volumes about how much he trusts Coach Herb.”
On Michigan’s academics:
Susan: “I got to meet with their football admin (Claiborne Green) that handles recruits and their academics. He was able to give me all the information. He broke down what it takes for the players to be successful as well as the study hall requirements. He spent a good hour if not more answering our questions and talking about areas the boys are interested in. Michigan has a top-notch school all around. Both the boys are interested in the business and management aspect, and they are one of the top three schools in the country. Michigan definitely has that high-academic standard.”
Jerod Sr.: “When we talked to the business program, he flat out told the boys that yes, we do have a top three business program in American and have all the tools to help them be successful but that they better be ready to do some calculus. He made it very clear that the business program is one of the best, and we want you to be in it, but you better know calculus from Day 1. I have an MBA, so I feel like anyone can get, but Michigan really has a great business program. It’s different.”
On how Michigan would fit Jacob:
Susan: “This was a hot topic throughout the whole visit. Jacob and Jerod have been playing with each other since they were four. They complement each other in what they can do. If both of them were there, I think they can be a dynamic duo. I think the other teams would be worried about both of them. I think they would complement each other very well on the field.”
Jerod Sr.: “In high school they play identical positions, but in college, they would play different positions, which would not interfere with them competing with each other because of their size and frame. The boys are like yin and yang. But outside of football, they are like ‘why are you looking at me? mom, he just took a picture of me.’ But when they put their football equipment on, I don’t think they can operate without each other. For the sake of the both of them, I really want them to commit to the same school. But we did tell Jacob to pick the school that’s best for him.”
On what else they have to add about Michigan:
Susan: “From Ms. Christina (DeRuyter), who coordinated all the travel and made sure we were fed and where we were supposed to be, to the head coach and everybody in between, they are a well-oiled machine. They are all a wonderful group of people.”
Jerod Sr.: “Michigan is light years ahead of a lot of other programs in what they provide for their players. For example, the new meal money package (NIL) they are coming out with. It’s going to make the kids earn the meal money. It’s not just going to be put a tweet out and get paid. They are going to have to go to workshops and be better young adults. They are going to have to go to financial workshops and taxes workshops, so kids aren’t just getting money and blowing it. I like where Michigan is heading. They had Jaylen (Harrell), Rayshaun (Bennny) and Braiden (McGregor) with us. They are all projected to go to the NFL, but when they were around us, they acted like normal kids. They were cracking on each other. It wasn’t ‘Coach Elston asked me to come out.’ They came bowling with us and had dinner with us. They didn’t mind giving up their time. I though that was really cool, also.”
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