The day after Jim Harbaugh announced he was leaving Michigan for the NFL, Carter Smith had a visitor waiting for him at Bishop Verot High in Fort Myers, Fla.
It was Florida State coach Mike Norvell.
The leader of the defending ACC champions — who already had a quarterback committed in his 2025 recruiting class — was hoping to swipe the best high school QB in the Sunshine State during a time of uncertainty in Ann Arbor.
Florida’s 2023 Gatorade Player of the Year thanked Norvell for stopping by but told him in not-so-many words, “Sorry, I’m a Michigan man.”
“Unless that whole staff leaves, Carter knows there’s no reason to (look elsewhere),” Smith’s father, Dan, said at last weekend’s Elite 11 Regional camp in Winter Garden, Fla.
Smith, ranked No. 154 overall and the No. 13 quarterback in the 247Sports Composite, will be in Ann Arbor this weekend for Michigan’s spring game. The Wolverines have only three commitments in their 2025 class and will be looking to build recruiting momentum.
“I hope all the other recruits get to see all the great things Michigan has to offer,” Smith said. “Nothing beats its family atmosphere. I’m happy with where I’m at. I want to build the class so we can compete for another national title.”
That hasn’t stopped folks from calling Smith to see if he’s willing to change his mind. Georgia Tech offensive coordinator Chris Weinke buzzes him often. So do coaches at Texas A&M and Florida.
— Carter Smith (@_CarterSmith9) January 10, 2023
Smith is planning on taking his official visit to Michigan in June and enrolling early in January.
He is a little taller (up to 6 foot 4) and a little thicker (187 pounds) than the last time he was on Michigan’s campus for the Ohio State game. He’s gained 15 pounds since the end of his junior season.
At Sunday’s Elite 11 camp, Smith flashed one of the strongest arms among all participants, throwing the ball 56 mph (he can throw a baseball in the mid-90s).
He also ran the 40-yard dash in 4.6 seconds. Richie Rode, the head coach at Bishop Verot, said his star quarterback squats more than 400 pounds and power cleans over 250. And he’s not afraid to use his size to barrel over opponents.
“I watch him and think he’s another Josh Allen,” said Charles Fishbein, a recruiting analyst with Rivals and Elite Scouting Services. “Just a big, raw, athletic kid who is super athletic.”
Smith said he fell in love with Michigan because of the people. During his first campus visit, strangers wished him a happy birthday.
Smith’s father said his son built a strong relationship with Harbaugh and quarterback J.J. McCarthy and is sticking with the Wolverines in large part because quarterbacks coach Kirk Campbell — who began recruiting Smith as a sophomore — remains on Michigan’s staff.
It also doesn’t hurt that it’s easier for Smith’s family to get to Ann Arbor than Tallahassee.
“Essentially for us, it’s the easiest travel — 2 1/2-hour flight to Detroit and then a half-hour drive to Ann Arbor,” said Dan Smith, who is a supervisor of maintenance for athletic complexes in the Fort Myers area.
“Tallahassee would’ve been a six-hour drive every week. We’ve been up to Ann Arbor three or four times. We went up for the Purdue and Ohio State games. My brother-in-law went to the Ohio State game, and he said there was nothing like it. The community and culture is just so great. We love the old brick buildings, leaves changing. I also didn’t know Michigan’s business school is what it is. Carter wants to study business management and do something in construction.”
College football coaches aren’t the only ones still calling Smith to see if he’ll change his mind about Michigan. Baseball scouts are checking in, as well.
Smith grew up playing baseball year-round and was ranked the No. 1 shortstop in the country for his age group by Perfect Game in 2021 when he threw 91 mph on the mound.
But after a stellar freshman season at quarterback, Smith’s father said, “I think that’s when he knew what his path was gonna be.” He hasn’t played baseball since.
“The story I like to share about Carter is the one from his second start as a freshman,” Rode said.
“We’re playing one of our rivals, Fort Myers Dunbar, and they’ve got a safety in Shawn Russ who was committed to Florida and ended up signing with Arizona State. Second play of the game, Carter takes off running and instead of running out of bounds, he lowers his shoulder right into Russ’ chest — big collision. I’m worried. This is a 14-year-old kid. Carter gets up all pumped up.
“He’s a linebacker playing quarterback, mentality-wise. That’s his way of leadership. He does it with his old school way of football.”
In his three seasons as a varsity starter, Smith has run for 1,988 yards and 44 touchdowns and completed 60.6 percent of his attempts for 7,352 yards, 73 touchdowns and only 13 interceptions.
“He likes the grind, the physicality, everything about football compared to baseball,” Dan Smith said. “He’s been that way since he was 5 years old. Carter is just starting to scratch the surface of playing quarterback. He’s just now starting to figure it out.”
Dan Smith and his wife are both excellent athletes. Dan grew up in Baltimore and spent seven years in the Atlanta Braves farm system as a left-handed pitcher. His wife was a gymnast and cheerleader.
Smith believes his son would be ranked higher by the recruiting services if he played on a seven-on-seven team. As much as Smith loves the sport, he’s made it clear that he’s not interested in touch football unless it involves playing with his high school teammates in team competitions.
As for personalized quarterback training, Smith hasn’t really done much of that, either. He’s met up with Will Hewlett at the QB Collective in Jacksonville, Fla., a couple of times to work on his throwing motion. But that’s it.
“They definitely fixed some stuff with his hips,” Dan Smith said. “Just like pitching, there are some mechanics you have to do right. Otherwise, he’s been working out, going to the beach, going fishing and being a kid.
“So many people get caught up in rankings. You read some of these scouting reports and it’s totally wrong. Somebody wrote his misses are low. His issue is he gets a little tall and misses high. I’m like, ‘You’ve clearly never seen this kid play one snap of football.’”
In a year, Michigan fans will get to see what Smith looks like in maize and blue.
(Photo: Manny Navarro / The Athletic)
