Arizona added another weapon to its offense on Sunday when Fresno (Calif.) Central East running back Brandon Smith announced his commitment to the Wildcats over Cal. The 6-foot, 190-pound prospect recently narrowed his list to the two former Pac-12 foes after taking official visits to both schools earlier this month.

UNLV was also in the mix and hosted Smith on a visit this month as well. The one-time San Diego State commit watched his recruitment hit new levels in the spring, and he eventually backed away from his early pledge in April.

Arizona running backs coach Alonzo Carter continued to build a relationship with Smith since the fall, and the Wildcats secured his pledge following his final official visit of the process two weekends ago.

UA was one of the first Power 4 schools to jump in the mix with an offer last November giving the program an inside track as his recruitment developed. Smith was on campus with the Wildcats in April for an unofficial visit prior to backing off his pledge to the Aztecs.

Utah, Boise State, San Jose State and Washington State were some of the other programs that offered the 2026 recruit.

Smith is the 16th commitment for Arizona in the cycle and the first running back among the group. The two-way athlete, who runs track athlete and competes in the 100-meter, 200-meter and 300-meter, rushed for 1,871 yards and 25 touchdowns on 277 carries as a junior last season.

The new UA commit had nine games with at least 100 yards rushing in 2024. He also caught 31 passes for 354 yards and two receiving touchdowns. On defense, he accounted for 71 tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss, two sacks and two interceptions.