Some players might feel pressure when coaches constantly talk about them in terms of unlimited potential and NFL type of ability.
Jeremy Smith has heard those things, and he’s heard his coaches be tough on him. And it doesn’t bother him a bit.
“It doesn’t really get to me, because personally, I know how good I can be,” said Smith of the high expectations. “For some people, the pressure is too much for them if they have people telling them you can do this or do that. Me, I just go out there and do what I can do and just focus on the main task at hand and not worry so much about other stuff.”
At 6-foot-5 and 260 pounds, Smith has the look of the prototypical defense end, in college or the NFL. Besides the size, he is agile and fast.
“Jeremy Smith, we look for him to have a really outstanding year,” said co-defensive coordinator and defensive line coach Bill Young, who switched Smith to the Leo, or strong side defensive end position. “We moved him from the boundary end to the field end, and he’s really adapted well.”
Second-year head coach Philip Montgomery has thrown around words like “breakout year” when talking about expectations for Smith.
A breakout season would get him on the radar of NFL scouts in hopes of Smith becoming the next in a long line of TU defensive linemen to play in the NFL. The list includes current Detroit Lions starter Tyrunn Walker, former Dallas Cowboys standout Willie Townes, Tracy Scoggins, Dennis Byrd, Don Blackmon (NFL linebacker), Dean Hamel, Sam Rayburn, Tom Baldwin, Chris Pike and Kevin Lilly.
A Tulsa defense that got torched by opposing quarterbacks last season needs Smith to have that breakout season.
Smith has come a long way from his high school days at Berryhill where he was an all-state performer at defensive end and tight end. He could easily play tight end in college, having 1,704 receiving yards and 21 touchdowns in his high school career.
In one high school playoff win over Inola as a senior, Smith had 11 catches for 167 yards and two touchdowns, rushed for another touchdown and registered a quarterback sack. His career defensive stats include 18 career sacks and three fumble returns for touchdowns.
“The biggest thing is size,” Smith said of the most difficult adjustment he had coming to TU from Berryhill. “Playing In 3A, you don’t have many big guys you go up against. Throughout high school, I was always bigger than everyone else. The other thing was playing in front of big crowds.”
Foregoing a redshirt year traditionally reserved for freshmen defensive linemen, Smith recorded three sacks while playing in pass rushing situations in 2014.
“I think the majority of freshmen coming in expect to be redshirted,” Smith said. “When I came in, I was kind of in the middle of the road, thinking, maybe, maybe not. But by the end of fall camp, the coaches were saying they liked what I had going for me, especially my pass rushing.”
Smith recorded 6.5 tackles for loss, including 2.5 sacks, last season as a starter in 11 games at weak side defensive end. He suffered a sprained ankle in the season opener and missed the next two games before returning for the rest of the season.
The ankle injury is far from Smith’s mind these days, as he had trouble remembering which ankle he injured when asked about it during TU Football Media Day on August 8.
When asked about his and the defense’s performance last season, Smith thought it was a year in which Tulsa can build upon.
“It can always be better. Defensively, we did improve, but we still have room to grow,” said Smith. “Last season was good to me. There were some things that we weren’t on the same page about as a team, but we’re getting it fixed. Coach (Young) just told us how proud he was of us, executing the little things.
“Always my expectation is to raise the bar each year. My main goal is to try to set a good example, make people around me better. Because when you make people around you better, then overall, it makes an impact on the entire defense.”
