ARIZONA STATE FOOTBALL
Arizona State lands cornerback transfer Derrick Smith from Illinois
Dec 7, 2021, 3:34 PM

PISCATAWAY, NJ - NOVEMBER 14: Illinois Fighting Illini defensive back Derrick Smith (2) prior to the college football game between the Rutgers Scarlet Knights and the Illinois Fighting Illini on November 14, 2020 at SHI Stadium in Piscataway, NJ. (Photo by Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
(Photo by Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Arizona State has landed another transfer in Derrick Smith, a cornerback who played two years at Miami before transferring to Illinois in 2019 for two seasons.
— derrick smith (@derrick8179) December 7, 2021
Smith appeared in seven games for Illinois in 2021 primarily on special teams, totaling 17 tackles for the Illini. He appeared in all eight games in 2020, making four starts and recording 22 tackles.
In his two seasons at Miami, the 6-foot-2, 220-pound corner had 24 tackles in 25 games for the Hurricanes. He will have one year of eligibility for the Sun Devils.
ASU also landed Mississippi State linebacker transfer Rodney Groce Jr. on Monday. He played in just four games as a second-year freshman and did not record a tackle.
Groce was originally committed to Nebraska before flipping his decision to the Bulldogs. Out of high school, he had offers from some of college football’s biggest names such as Alabama, Auburn, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Tennessee and LSU to just name a few.
The linebacker will still have four years of eligibility remaining, according to SunDevilSource.com.