Smith reflects on Illinois junior day
Illinois had a strong collection of talent in Champaign the weekend of Jan. 26. One of those who made a visit was Chicago Mt. Carmel class of 2014 defensive tackle Enoch Smith Jr., who already holds an offer from the Illini.
"I have been down there a couple times," Smith said. "I was able to interact with all of the coaches this time, and I met some of the new coaches. I met my new recruiting coach, because my [old] recruiting coach went on to the University of North Carolina.
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"I was happy I was able to sit down and speak with Coach [Tim] Beckman on a one-on-one basis. He was telling me how much he wanted to keep the in-state players in-state to play for the state school, and how he wanted to bring back the Illinois tradition."
Smith's old recruiting contact at Illinois, Keith Gilmore, is now recruiting the Chicago native to North Carolina. Arizona State is another program that has been showing new interest.
Outside of the trip to Illinois, Smith has not taken other visits recently but he is looking at seeing a few schools over the next few months.
"I have been talking to Notre Dame and they want me to come down for a visit," Smith said. "Michigan State wants me to come down for a visit, and there were a couple other schools. Anybody that is interested, I am willing to try to make a visit."
Notre Dame has already offered Smith, as have Cincinnati, Indiana, Purdue, Eastern Michigan, Northern Illinois and Toledo. The 6-foot-3, 265-pound defensive tackle is still a long way from making his final decision.
"A timeframe I do not have," Smith said. "I am just trying to wait and see what is the best fit for me because I will be at the university for the next four years. I just want to make sure I am making the best decision."