Boston College Football Recruiting: Thaddius Smith Commits To Boston College

Steve Addazio nabbed his fifth recruit for the 2014 recruiting class when he received a commitment from wide receiver / defensive back Thaddius Smith. The Cardinal O'Hara's (Springfield, PA) athlete had announced last week that he was making his decision today. Many had speculated that Boston College would be his choice given that he recently called the program his "number one," and Smith made a verbal commitment to the program in a ceremony this afternoon.

Congrats @thadd_4nation for committing to Boston College! twitter.com/Durkin_donuts/…

— Bridget (@Durkin_donuts) April 15, 2013

As one would expect, the Lions senior had real good things to say about the program.

"I just like everything about them - the academics, the fan base, the city is great and all the coaches have open arms for me and my family," said Smith. "The ACC is also a top conference to play in and Boston College is recruiting me the hardest with Coach (Ryan) Day and Coach (Steve) Addazio."

The 5-foot-11 athlete received offers from James Madison, Massachusetts, Rutgers, Temple and Toledo. He also received interest from Penn State, South Carolina, West Virginia and Maryland. Late last week Smith culled his list to four programs and chooses the Eagles over his other finalists -- James Madison, Temple and Villanova. Fellow Boston College commits DUAL Darius Wade (Middletown, DE) and RB Marcus Outlow (Norwich, CT) were actively involved in Smith's commitment.

According to the recruiting services, Rivals ranks Smith as the 44th best athlete in the country and a three star recruit. 247Sports had him as a 4* athlete, rated a 92 and the top recruit in Pennsylvania. He was named the 137th-best high school football athlete in the nation for the 2014 class by 247Sports.com.

The versatile athlete has lined up at multiple offensive and defensive positions at O'Hara over the past three seasons. As a junior, he rushed for 363 yards and four touchdowns on 57 carries while catching 33 balls for another 426 yards and eight more scores. Smith has mentioned on Twitter that he was recruited to play wide receiver.

You can find Smith's highlight films here and follow him on Twitter @Thadd_4Nation.

Welcome to the Heights, Thaddius!

2014 Boston College Football Recruiting Class

1. RB Marcus Outlow (Norwich, CT) - 6-0, 199 lbs., ***
Offers: Boston College, UCONN, UMass, Ohio State, Texas Tech, UCLA

2. WR Isaac Yiadom (Worcester, MA) - 6-1, 170 lbs., ***
Offers: Boston College, Bryant, UCONN, Holy Cross, UMass, Virginia Tech

3. DE Harold Landry (Fayetteville, NC) - 6-4, 228 lbs., NR
Offers: Boston College, Appalachian State, Citadel, Duke, East Carolina, South Carolina

4. QB Darius Wade (Middletown, DE) - 6-2, 190 lbs., ***
Offers: Boston College, Bucknell, Delaware, UMass, Nebraska, N.C. State, Syracuse, Temple

5. ATH Thaddius Smith (Springfield, PA) - 5-11, 170 lbs., ***
Offers: Boston College, Rutgers, Temple, James Madison, UMass, Toledo, Villanova