Greg Robinson is in his first season as Syracuse's head coach and decided to also name himself defensive coordinator. Robinson, who has been a coordinator in college and the NFL, is only one of a handful of coaches who have taken on the dual responsibilities of head coach and defensive...[details]
2004 (Junior): One of 13 players to start all 12 games All-BIG EAST Second Team Selection Ranked third on the team with 85 tackles Was second on the team with three interceptions, including one for a touchdown against Connecticut Played on the punt return and kickoff coverage units His 164 special teams plays were the fourth-most on the team Named the BIG EAST Special Teams Player of the Week for his performance at Buffalo, when he tied an Orange record with two blocked punts, in addition to posting five tackles, including two solo Earned BIG EAST co-Defensive Player of the Week honors following the Cincinnati game, in which he picked off a pass, had 11 tackles, including eight solo, and blocked his third punt of the year Ranks third among defensive backs in the conference with 7.1 tackles per game At Purdue, recorded eight tackles, including two solo At Virginia, posted eight tackles, including three solo Against Rutgers, tallied six stops, including five solo, and broke up two passes Against Florida State, made seven tackles, including four solo and one for a loss At West Virginia, registered seven stops, including three solo Against Connecticut, started at cornerback due to an injury to DeAndre LaCaille and tallied an interception, in addition to his four solo tackles and one quarterback hurry Against Pittsburgh, started at cornerback and had eight solo tackles At Temple, had a game-high 14 tackles, including five solo At Boston College, tallied an interception, a forced fumble and two solo tackles Recorded five tackles, including three solo against Georgia Tech in the Champs Sports Bowl.
2003 (Sophomore): Started all 12 games One of 13 players to start every game His five interceptions in 2003 were the most since Ian McIntosh had five in 1999 Tied for third in the BIG EAST in interceptions Ranked sixth on SUs season list of tackles by a defensive back with 106 Tied for 15th overall and fourth among defensive backs in the BIG EAST with 8.8 tackles per game Played on punt return, kickoff return and PAT/FG defense special teams units At North Carolina, recorded seven tackles, including six solo stops Had 14 tackles, including nine unassisted, and one interception versus Louisville Against Central Florida, posted seven solo tackles and six assisted stops and recovered one fumble Had eight tackles, including four solo, one interception and one pass breakup against Toledo Recorded seven solo tackles and had an interception at Virginia Tech Named BIG EAST Special Teams Player of the Week after blocking a punt and returning it 20 yards for his first career touchdown against Boston College Also recorded seven tackles, including three solo, against the Eagles At Pittsburgh, posted 12 tackles, including eight unassisted Had seven tackles, including four solo, and broke up one pass against Temple Recorded eight tackles, including five solo, and forced a fumble at Miami Against West Virginia, posted seven tackles, including five solo, and broke up one pass At Rutgers, blocked a punt that was returned five yards for a touchdown by Steve Gregory, and recorded 13 tackles, including a career-high six assisted stops Posted three solo tackles and two interceptions against Notre Dame Both picks led to SU touchdowns versus the Fighting Irish.
2002 (Freshman): Played in 11 games Played on SUs kickoff and punt return special teams units Led all true freshman with 37 tackles and two tackles for a loss Played in first career game against North Carolina Registered six tackles, including one for a loss against Rhode Island Made one tackle against Pittsburgh Recorded six tackles, including one for a loss and recovered a fumble at Temple Established a career-high with 13 tackles at West Virginia and had one pass breakup Had two tackles against Rutgers Registered one solo tackle at Central Florida Made one tackle at Boston College Recorded one tackle against Miami.
Personal: Born September 20, 1983 Son of Charlotte and Homer Smith Four brothers Majoring in retail and consumer studies.
High School : All-Midwest Region selection by PrepStar Rated the No. 26 safety by Rivals.com First-team NEO Island All-District, All-Trumbull County, The Herald 22 as a senior and junior First-team Eastern District All-Starts and All-Ohio special mention as a junior Had six interceptions, rushed for 1,787 yards and scored 29 touchdowns for 11-1 team as a senior Posted 45 tackles, six interceptions, 10 pass breakups and rushed for 1,475 yards and 26 touchdowns garnering all-state honors as a junior Received teams Best Offensive Back Award as a senior and junior Recruited by former assistant coach Steve Dunlap.
Pros: Smith is a tough, hard-hitting safety who combines size and athleticism to play either safety spot. He has decent size for the position, but played much bigger over his three seasons. He shows excellent ball skills and the good hands to make many big plays. He is quick to read and react and can come up in run support and make the stop, though he is not a big hitter. He showed advanced coverage skills, especially in zone situations where can match up with most receivers. He has excellent leaping ability and the hands to go up and make the big interception. He is a real student of the game. Cons: At the Senior Bowl, he had a good week, though struggled at times in man situations with fast receivers. He may have to strong safety there after the poor speed at the combine. He can cover tight ends, but whether he can hold up physically as an in-the-box safety is suspect with barely adequate size. Numbers: At the Combine he ran poorly in the 40-yard dash with times of 4.71 and 4.76 seconds, which are not up to NFL standards. He did 18 reps on the 225-pound bench press and had a 41" vertical jump and a 10'5" broad jump.
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