Independence Bowl

[LevelheadedMizzouFan]

Hey, the Big XII North is definitely showing off this December! If it weren't for the coachless wonders in Boulder, we'd be undefeated!

 

I came home and ran through the Indy Bowl on my TiVo (greatest invention of all time...better than the polio vaccine) and I heard Craig James make a good point about Smith in the NFL:

 

He's going to succeed in wherever he plays at whatever position he plays because he is a good person first and a tremendous athlete second.

 

I really couldn't agree more. I've interviewed him on a number of occasions and, for a guy who has every right to refer to himself in the third person and be completely concieted, he is arguably the most humble athlete I've ever interviewed. If asked about a win, it was a team effort. If asked about a loss, we all didn't make enough plays. It's always "us" not "me" with him, and I love that.

[pigsonthewing]

If it weren't for the coachless wonders in Boulder, we'd be undefeated!

 

wow thats some funny stuff right there. well said. good job to mizzou and representing the "mediocre" Big XII North.

[husker rob]

Props to Brad Smith for a great career at MU. During the game yesterday ESPN showed some stats and he ranks #4 all time for total offense. I cant say that I wont be glad that he is graduating and wont be back next year because alot of theos yards have come at the expense of the Huskers the last few years.

 

He is definatly the reason MU came back to win yesterday.

 

Congrats Brad and good luck

[Eric the Red]

Like against NU, Smith makes it look so easy, like he wasn't trying.

[Eric the Red]

Brad Smith will be a tough act to follow

 

Graham Watson, St. Louis Post-Dispatch

 

SHREVEPORT, LA.-Missouri coach Gary Pinkel knew what type of quarterback he had in Brad Smith when he recruited him out of Youngstown, Ohio. He just had no idea that the young player would adapt to the college game so quickly.

 

As an 18-year-old redshirt freshman in his first start, Smith was facing Illinois, the reigning Big 10 champion, in front of a bipartisan crowd in the 2002 season opener at the Edward Jones Dome.

 

Although Smith admitted he had butterflies in that first contest, the only people who left awestruck were those who watched him lead Missouri to a 33-20 upset victory over the Illini. In that game, Smith had 290 yards of total offense and a 24-yard touchdown run.

 

"If I told people I thought he was going to play like that, I'd be lying," Pinkel said after that game. "I told many people behind the scenes that this guy is a remarkably talented athlete with remarkable poise. To play like that, first game, 18 years old. I'm just glad he's on my team, and I'm glad he's a freshman. Just remarkable."

 

For the past four seasons, words like remarkable and amazing often have been used to describe Smith's career. Smith holds 59 Mizzou, Big 12 and NCAA records, including the NCAA career rushing record for quarterbacks (4,139 yards). He is also the first quarterback to throw for 8,000 yards and rush for 4,000 yards in a career.

 

The man who was the face of Missouri football for four years plays in his final game on Friday as the Tigers face South Carolina in the Independence Bowl.

 

"I don't know how many people in this program will want to wear 16 again," Missouri quarterbacks coach David Yost said. "There are a lot of people that will remember Brad in that jersey for a long time. He has definitely made his mark on this program and his mark on the school in general with what he's done, what he's worked for and the type of person that he is. No one will ever forget that."

 

Focal point

 

For all of Smith accomplishments, he has managed just a 24-23 record heading into the game Friday. But that record hasn't lessened the emphasis many coaches have placed on stopping him over the years.

 

Coaches whom Smith has faced can all recall jaw-dropping moments when Smith made a play when no play seemed possible.

 

Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops remembers the first time he faced Smith, on Oct. 5, 2002. Oklahoma won the game 31-24 after a fake field goal, but not before Smith shocked the No. 3 Sooners with 26 carries for 213 yards and two touchdowns and 391 yards of total offense. It was the Smith's first televised game against a ranked opponent and the nation's introduction to the new regime of Missouri football.

 

"I remember the night we saw him in Columbia as a freshman and thinking to myself that he was going to be a handful for the league over the next four years," Stoops said. "That definitely turned out to be the case. He just presents so many challenges to a defense with his size, his speed and his feel of the game. He is also a player who had the respect of people around the Big 12 for the way he conducted himself. He is a person that the Missouri program and fans can be proud of in a lot of ways."

 

A year later, Smith's 350 yards of total offense and four touchdowns gave the Tigers a 41-24 win over Nebraska. It was the Tigers' first win against the Cornhuskers since 1978 and the first win over a ranked opponent since 1997.

 

Memories like these have become commonplace. But even this week, Smith's selfless attitude came through when he declined to comment on the legacy he's leaving at MU, saying, "I'm focusing on the bowl game right now."

 

Pinkel said: "He'll be looked at as a winner. Two of the last three years that he's been quarterback of this football team, they won and went to bowls. That's more important. You can take all the other stats and throw them away."

 

New model

 

For Missouri coaches and players, the one thing they'll remember about Smith, far above the accolades and achievements, is how he was as a person. Pinkel said that when he got to Mizzou, he set out to change the type of player the school recruited. Smith became the poster boy for that new model of MU football player.

 

At the Missouri Athletic Club's Jack Buck Sports Awards on Dec. 12, Pinkel recounted Smith's heroics against Nebraska, but not because of what he did to win. He told the story of Smith spotting a Nebraska player punching a Missouri fan after the win. Pinkel said instead of celebrating the victory with his teammates, Smith was alerting the coaching staff to what he saw.

 

"That's Brad Smith," Pinkel said. "He's never thinking of himself. He's always thinking of everyone else. That should have been one of the happiest moments of his career, and instead he's trying to tell me about this incident."

 

That selflessness is something Smith's teammates have noticed as well. Despite all of his media attention, he's quick to divert the praise to his teammates and coaches.

 

"I don't think you can be jealous of Brad," said defensive lineman Scott Wheatley, who is Smith's best friend on the team. "He always heaps praise on everyone else before himself. That's why guys follow him. That's why he's a leader. Every single one of those stories you read about him is true. He makes you want to be a better person."

 

Relieved opponents

 

As Smith's college career winds down and he embarks on an opportunity to display his fancy footwork in the NFL, he's trying to take in all of the experiences of the past four years. His fans, teammates and coaches probably will be doing the same.

 

But when the final seconds click down on Smith career, a collective sigh of relief might be heard from the various coaches around the Big 12 who won't have to face him anymore.

 

"I think quarterbacks like him change the game and make their teams so much better because of the dimensions they bring, the options, the scrambles, the throwing," said Mike Hankwitz, former defensive coordinator at Colorado. "Guys like that are capable of changing the game totally. ... You've seen it throughout the course of his career how he can take over a game and make it totally different. I'm glad we don't have to play against him anymore."

 

Scouts' take on Brad Smith

 

We asked three NFL scouts to comment about Missouri quarterback Brad Smith.

 

Scout No. 1

 

"He's going to need to develop at our level if he wants to play quarterback. But he's a great athlete. If he's not a quarterback, I think wide receiver would be an option for him because of the way he moves around and his build. He's kind of similar to (Pittsburgh's Antwaan) Randle El physically. I think he will be drafted, just because of those things that you could probably do with him."

 

Scout No. 2

 

"Anytime you try to project a guy in another position - and that's what you're going to have to do with him - it's risky business. He's a very fine athlete, has great speed and good hands. His potential probably is as a wide receiver, because you've seen him do some of those types of things. You have a pretty good feel for the instincts and athleticism he has as a runner, which is good. So I think that's where you'd start him out, unless somebody wanted to try to make a 'Slash' (ex-Steelers QB Kordell Stewart) out of him. He does have a strong arm, but he doesn't have some of the other things you look for in a quarterback."

 

Scout No. 3

 

"I expect him to be drafted, and actually drafted fairly high. It'll depend on the team that drafts him what position he winds up playing. I know some people will look at him at quarterback and then move him if he needs to be moved. And some people may just leave him at quarterback and develop his skills. The thing about him that's really interesting is he's extremely intelligent. So he can learn multiple positions. I personally think he's probably best suited to be a free safety, because of that intelligence factor, getting people lined up, being able to make all the adjustments. But that doesn't mean you preclude him from being a quarterback. I think he's got an opportunity to play and be a big factor in the National Football League, much the same as Randle El. There's probably a place for him, because of his multiple abilities."