Jared Smith

Physical Profile

Smith carries a massive, college-ready frame at 6'5" and 335 pounds — mass that most interior prospects need two years in a strength program to reach. His calling card is striking power at the point of contact: evaluators note he engulfs defenders and removes them from plays entirely once his hands are inside. The frame profiles cleanly to guard, where his mass and power translate immediately in the run game; the height gives him tackle-length margin, but his body type and camp usage point inside. The developmental question is not adding size but managing it — trimming and redistributing weight to protect lateral quickness and stamina at the Big Ten level.

Play Style

Smith is a people-mover. His film and camp tape show a mauler who wins with first contact — he strikes, latches, and buries defenders rather than sustaining stalemates. He is at his best in a downhill run game where he can fire off the ball into a defender's frame, and his camp dominance came the same way: winning reps decisively at contact rather than in extended mirror battles. He plays with a finisher's temperament, which is why programs like Auburn and Georgia stayed involved to his final four.

Strengths

• Elite raw power at contact — his striking ability lets him engulf and negate defenders, the trait that won him OL MVP at the 2025 Under Armour Next camp in Atlanta against top national OL competition
• Rare natural mass (335 pounds at 6'5") that requires no physical projection — he can anchor against Big Ten interior defensive linemen from day one
• Proven against top competition in evaluation settings — his composite standing (No. 28 IOL, No. 43 in Georgia, roughly No. 341-425 nationally depending on service snapshot) was earned in Georgia, one of the deepest talent states in the country, with Auburn, Georgia, and Georgia Tech all pursuing him to the end

Areas to Improve

• Conditioning and weight management — carrying 335 pounds into a Big Ten camp risks losing snaps to fatigue; playing in the 320s would preserve his power while improving recovery quickness
• Lateral agility and pass-set refinement — power-first interior linemen at his mass typically need a year of technical work on mirror ability against quick interior twitch rushers and stunts before they can be trusted in obvious passing situations

College Projection

Smith projects as an interior starter at guard for Rutgers with a realistic redshirt-or-rotational first year in 2026 while he recalibrates his body for Big Ten play speed. His mass and anchor give him a higher floor than most freshman interior linemen, so an injury-forced early role would not overwhelm him physically. Expect him to compete seriously for a starting guard job by year two and settle in as a multi-year Big Ten starter — he is exactly the caliber of lineman Rutgers has struggled to sign against SEC competition, which makes his development a program-level bellwether.

NFL Outlook

Legitimate draft trajectory if the development plan holds. Power-based guards with his natural mass and proven camp dominance against elite peers are an NFL archetype — think late-round to priority-free-agent floor with day-two upside if he becomes a three-year Big Ten starter and shows he can pass protect independently. His striking power is the trait scouts will bet on; his weight management and lateral quickness will decide whether he tests well enough to climb boards.

Best Fit

A gap/duo-heavy run scheme that asks him to displace defenders vertically rather than reach and cut off on wide zone. Rutgers under Greg Schiano — a program built on physicality and offensive line identity — is a genuinely strong stylistic match, and he chose it over bigger brands after roughly half a dozen visits, so the buy-in is real. Any offense that runs behind its guards maximizes him; a pure outside-zone system would waste his best trait.