Posted by Sabrina B. @gametimegirl

The New York Jets on Tuesday signed Australian rugby star Hayden Smith, a 6-foot-7, 240-pound former basketball player who projects as a tight end in the NFL, his personal coach, Tim Brewster, wrote on Twitter.

“Hayden Smith has signed with the Jets! Really think this guys upside in the NFL is huge!,” Brewster, the former University of Minnesota coach, wrote Tuesday.

Smith had visited a number of NFL teams, including the Jets, who hosted him in early February. Terms of Smith’s contract with the Jets weren’t immediately known and the team hasn’t yet acknowledged the signing.

Smith was born in Australia, played college basketball at Division II Metropolitan State in Denver, took up rugby and made the U.S. national team. From there, he played professional rugby on a premier team in England.

This wouldn’t be the Jets’ first Aussie signing. From 2005 to 2007, their punter was Ben Graham, a former Australian Rules football star. But Smith isn’t a punter and is supposed to be a terrific athlete. He reportedly ran the 40 in 4.7 seconds.

“A lot of coaches shy away from guys who haven’t played the game because it is an exhausting process. To me, that’s the exciting part,” Brewster, who has mentored Smith in the rugby star’s quest to become a tight end, told the Daily Telegraph in Australia. “Taking a piece of clay like that. And I am going to tell you, Hayden Smith is one beautiful piece of clay. Just mold him into what you want him to be.”

WRITTEN BY Rich Cimini | ESPNNewYork.com & FULL STORY HERE