4-star LB Smael Mondon: "The virus has slowed things down"

Smael Mondon is a coveted prospect.

The 6-foot-3, 210 pound athletic linebacker out of Dallas (Ga.) Paulding County has offers from schools coast to coast, and he had a major visit planned for the spring, but with visits banned due to the Coronavirus, Mondon has spent much more time at home and Little Caesars (his job) than he has on college campuses.

"It did not affect me too much, but it made me miss a visit to Oklahoma and overall, the virus has slowed things down," said Mondon. "I knew I was visiting Oklahoma and I thought I would take a few more visits this spring, then be really close to cutting my list down to five or six schools, but I am not there yet.

"With no visits this spring, I am not sure when I will get to that point now. Maybe still over the summer, but I am not sure."

The Sooners landed at No. 5 in Rivals' Ranking the Contenders file and Lincoln Riley's program is a major player in this race.

"I had a visit to Oklahoma scheduled and we have really been talking a lot since around October last year. It is a school I am very interested in, and I like the coaches there a lot, so it was going to be a big visit for me.

"I have been talking to coach Odom and coach Riley a lot, and we have strong relationships, so the visit would have allowed me to see what the school and program is like. The relationship I have with the coaches and coach Riley's plans for the program has Oklahoma up there for me."

Mondon mentioned how he hoped to be close to trimming his list to five or six schools, but with him communicating with numerous schools daily right now, the list is still longer than that.

"I am talking to a lot of schools right now, and schools like Georgia, Auburn, Florida, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Ohio State are contacting me every day. Others are contacting me every other day or every couple days, so it has been a lot.

"I try hard to respond to each school, but it is hard sometimes. It can get overwhelming right now with so many schools wanting to talk, but I am doing my best to balance it all."

Some coaches come at him with the same approach. Others change it up. He is just taking it all in and hearing what they have to say.

"Different schools come at me different ways. Some are more about football and some are casual in how they recruit me. There is a really a mix. In the end, I want to play for a coach that cares and the ones I have gotten close to show me that."

Some coaches have really made it very easy to conversate with Mondon.

"I have connected with a lot of coaches, but some I have a really strong connection with are coach Schumann at Georgia, coach Robinson at Florida, coach Odom at Oklahoma, coach T-Will (Travis Williams) at Auburn and coach Niedermeyer at Tennessee. The connection is important to me and I have good connections with some great coaches."

Even though the attention from so many coaches can be overwhelming at times for the Rivals100 talent, it does help him with the process. He is building relationships with coaches, he is seeing different sides of them and that is helping him move forward.

"Overall, I am just trying to figure things out," said Mondon. "I have to find the school that fits me best. I am looking for a strong relationship with my position coach, find the right people that fit me to be around, a program going in the right direction and a school that runs a defense that fits my style of play.

"All those things will be important when I cut my list down and when I make my decision."

When could that cut take place? The plan was for it to happen around this time, but recruiting is on his mind more with the free time Mondon has.

"I am thinking about recruiting more to be honest. I could still cut my list down later this spring, but it is harder without being able to take visits. I think about recruiting every day for sure, but I still have questions about schools and I am still searching for the best ones for me.

"I am still talking to around 10-15 schools, so right now, I am working to get that list down. I am not sure when I will be there.

"I just know I will do that first, then I plan to take my official visits and commit, so I do not see a decision coming any time soon. That is likely to happen after the season."