LB Tyanthony Smith enjoys visit for UT's season-opener
Linebacker Tyanthony Smith is an early offer for Texas in the 2024 class. Last weekend, the standout from Jasper made his way to Austin to watch the Longhorns’ season-opener and Smith said he was blown away by the overall experience.
“It was good just going out there, seeing a whole bunch of people in burnt orange. You don’t really see too much of that coming from a small town,” Smith said. “The game day experience was all good. Everybody treats you like you’re somebody there.”
Smith has been receiving mail from Texas linebackers coach Jeff Choate and head coach Steve Sarkisian reached out on September 1. Texas offered Smith when he visited the UT campus in June for an Elite Camp and Smith feels that visit actually improved his game.
“They liked me. They said I was explosive and they liked that. They also told me what I need to work on. They said work on my feet, which I’ve worked on ever since,” Smith said. “I’ve gotten way better foot-wise and with my pass coverage. We don’t see a lot of that at 4A since they mostly run the ball.”
The 6-1, 201-pound Smith already holds double-digit offers and he’s keeping an eye on all the schools that have been in touch.
“Auburn, UT, TCU Baylor, Texas Tech - really the majority of them have my attention,” Smith said. “They’ve all been keeping up and speaking to me. I haven’t visited so many yet, but once I get that down, I’ll have my mind made up.”
Smith missed Jasper’s first two games of the season while recovering from offseason surgery. He’s scheduled to be back in action this weekend when Jasper takes on Newton.
“I haven’t played in those two, but our team has been pretty good. I had surgery in February (patella tendon injury),” Smith said. “I had surgery, came back from it, been rehabbing from it so I feel good.”
Watching Texas last weekend, Smith said he sees some similarity in his game and UT linebacker DeMarvion Overshown’s in their body style and the effort both give on every play.
“I kind of see myself similar to Overshown. I’d say he’s more lanky than built. He’s not so far off from me,” Smith said. “I’m like, ‘that looks like me on the field.’ He gives 100 percent whether he’s tired or not.”
Up next, Smith will visit Texas A&M this coming weekend. He also plans to take in games at Auburn and Baylor in the coming weeks.