4-star WDE Tyreke Smith included Texas in Top 12

Cleveland Heights (Oh.) weak-side defensive end Tyreke Smith is among the most coveted edge rushers in the nation and on Friday evening, the Ohio native trimmed his lengthy offer list to 12 schools.

Included in the bunch were Tom Herman’s Texas Longhorns, along with Alabama, Penn State, Cincinnati, Ohio State, Michigan, Oregon, USC, Notre Dame, UCLA, Georgia and Kentucky.

A four-star prospect, Smith picked up an offer from the Longhorns in late January and has since continued to see his recruitment gain steam.

To date, Smith holds 37 offers and programs such as Michigan State, Baylor, Florida, Louisville, LSU, Oklahoma, Ole Miss and Tennessee were left on the outside looking in of Smith’s cut.

As expected when the Longhorns offered, Texas has been able to become a real player in Smith’s recruitment, largely due to recruiting ties that Herman, Tim Beck and Stan Drayton developed during their tenures at Ohio State. Now that the ‘Horns are still in the mix after Smith trimmed 25 programs from consideration, the next step for Herman and his staff will be to get Smith on campus at some point throughout the summer.

Considering the staff’s ties to Ohio and proven ability to land high-level out-of-state talent during the 2018 cycle, expect the Longhorns to remain a factor in Smith’s recruitment.

At 6’3, 260 pounds, Smith ranks as the nation’s No. 148 player, No. 8 weak-side defensive end and the No. 5 player in Ohio, per 247Sports Composite.