Keelin Smith is the 58th player profiled in this series of the players likely to impact Florida State's season. There are four days until FSU football. The list is not in any specific order.

Keelin Smith

6'3, 187 | RS-FR | Cornerback

Background

Three-star cornerback with great size and athleticism, who also could play safety...ranked the No. 34 best cornerback by Rivals.com and No. 28 safety by Scout.com...rated a four-star prospect and the No. 14 safety by 247Sports...as a senior posted 64 tackles, one interception and blocked three field goals...selected to the Under Armour All-American team...No. 60 on the ESPNU 150 and No. 5 overall safety...No. 58 on Bill Buchalter's 2011 Florida Top 100 for the Orlando Sentinel...No.40 on the SuperPrep Florida 110...member of the Florida Times-Union's Super 75 where he was rated as the No. 5 cornerback...selected first team all-area defensive back by TCPalm...Scout.com's Mike Bakas rated Smith as the No. 55 player in Florida in the Post-Season Top 100...rated No. 16 in the Gainesville Sun's top 50 seniors list for the state of Florida...chosen by ESPN760 as the No. 6 player in the 10 players to watch in Palm Beach County and the Treasure Coast...at age 14 won not only a national but international title at the prestigious Hershey's National Track and Field Championship in Hershey, Pa., winning the boys age 13-14 standing long jump competition with jumps of 9 feet, 5 1/4 inches (national) and 9-4 1/4 (international) to be the first national champ in the 17-year history of Fort Pierce's Sheraton Plaza Track Club...born January 1, 1983. [Media guide]

Part of the reason I elected not to debut this list in any specific order is to allow myself a chance to save players about whom I had questions for last. Since Keelin Smith didn't play in 2011, he is one of those players.

When Smith was recruited, some figured it was a way to make sure Jeff Luc stayed in the fold. Funny how things work out, however, as Luc, a 2010 signee, has now transferred to Cincinnati, and Smith is a promising young corner with the potential to be a three-year starter.

In 2012, Smith's role will be to back up Xavier Rhodes at the boundary cornerback position. Smith has battled a bit of a knee tweak this fall, but when he's been in action, the coaching staff has been pleased with his development.

Some are not convinced that Rhodes is completely healthy after coming off a knee injury of his own suffered in the bowl game. If Rhodes is forced to miss significant time, Smith could be the guy to get the snaps.

Smith offers impressive height and athleticism. It's difficult for opponents to throw over him when he is covering the flat. He's added some muscle, and will need to continue that in order to be effective against the run in the coming years.