Smith, a JUCO prospect, committed to the Beavers last month but never signed with the team
A junior college prospect who committed to Oregon State will not be joining the Beavers program after he was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder. Brandon Smith, a running back Santa Barbara City College, committed to the Beavers after an official visit last month. Oregon State told ESPN that Smith “never signed with the team and will not be a part of the program.”
Smith was one of four men arrested on June 7 and charged with attempted murder, robbery and conspiracy in the wake of an incident near a community pool on June 2 that left a 20-year-old man seriously injured.
Smith totaled 1,231 rushing yards at 6.8 yards per attempt in addition to 16 rushing touchdowns last season for Santa Barbra City College. The Chicago native did not have any major scholarship offers out of high school but gained attention from the likes of Oregon State, Hawaii, Fresno State and Nevada after his impressive JUCO campaign.
Smith was slated to join a running back room at Oregon State headlined by the reigning Pac-12 Offensive Freshman of the Year, Damien Martinez. With Martinez holding down the starting job, Smith would have had to compete with returning contributors Deshaun Fenwick and Jam Griffin for snaps.
