James Smith (American football)

Last updated
James Smith
James Smith (American football).jpg
Smith in 2026
Ohio State Buckeyes
Position Defensive tackle
ClassJunior
Personal information
Born (2005-04-07) April 7, 2005 (age 20) [1]
Height6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight297 lb (135 kg)
Career information
High school George Washington Carver
(Montgomery, Alabama)
IMG Academy
(Bradenton, Florida)
College
Stats at ESPN

James Smith (born April 7, 2005) [1] is an American college football defensive tackle for the Ohio State Buckeyes. He previously played for the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Contents

Early life

Smith is from Montgomery, Alabama. [2] He attended George Washington Carver High School in Montgomery from his freshman to sophomore years, playing football as a defensive lineman and posting double-digit sacks as a sophomore while helping Carver allow only 16 points per game. [3] He transferred to IMG Academy in Florida as a junior in 2021, but transferred back to Carver mid-way through the 2021 season. [4] He then had to sit out the rest of the year after being ruled ineligible. [5] He played his senior season at Carver in 2022. [6]

Smith was ranked a five-star prospect and one of the top recruits in the class of 2023. [3] He was ranked a top-20 player nationally and the second-best defensive line recruit by 247Sports. [7] Smith, along with his Carver teammate Qua Russaw, committed to play college football for the Alabama Crimson Tide. [8]

College career

Alabama

Smith was a backup as a true freshman in 2023, behind Jaheim Oatis, Tim Keenan III, and Tim Smith, and posted two tackles. [9] He then appeared in all 13 games as a sophomore in 2024, tallying 20 tackles, two pass breakups and a sack. [10] Smith became a starter for Alabama in 2025. [11] [12]

Ohio State

On January 12, 2026, Smith transferred to Ohio State.

References

  1. 1 2 "James Smith DL Alabama NFL Draft Profile". nfldraftbuzz.com. Retrieved December 28, 2025.
  2. ↑ "James Smith". Alabama Crimson Tide.
  3. 1 2 Shames, Jacob (August 18, 2022). "Fab Five: Carver football 5-star DT James Smith lets his reputation speak for itself". The Montgomery Advertiser . Archived from the original on November 14, 2025. Retrieved December 1, 2025– via archive.today.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  4. ↑ Rushin, Jerell (March 10, 2022). "Carver 5-star James Smith hungry for Alabama high school football after year at IMG Academy". The Montgomery Advertiser .
  5. ↑ Alvarez, Nick (April 21, 2022). "2023 5-star DL James Smith is back home for nationwide recruitment". AL.com .
  6. ↑ Alvarez, Nick (August 15, 2022). "A-List No. 3: Carver-Montgomery 5-star James Smith enjoys the questions around his recruitment". AL.com . Archived from the original on November 14, 2025. Retrieved December 1, 2025– via archive.today.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  7. ↑ Suttles, Aaron (December 21, 2022). "Alabama signs 5-star teammates James Smith, Qua Russaw". The Athletic .
  8. ↑ VanHaaren, Tom (December 21, 2022). "Jaquavious Russaw, James Smith stay local, commit to Alabama". ESPN.
  9. ↑ Goodbread, Chase (September 5, 2024). "Five-star recruits James Smith, Qua Russaw emerging in second year with Alabama football". Tuscaloosa News .
  10. ↑ Kelly, Nick (August 20, 2025). "This Alabama defender is a 'havoc-style' player". AL.com .
  11. ↑ Stahl, Matt (August 26, 2025). "Can newfound maturity help this Alabama DL unlock his potential?". AL.com .
  12. ↑ Kelly, Nick (September 27, 2025). "Alabama star ejected for targeting in second half vs Georgia". AL.com .
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.