Z. Martin retiring. HOF is next. More Pro Bowls than career holding penalties
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Replies to: Z. Martin retiring. HOF is next. More Pro Bowls than career holding penalties
Re: Z. Martin retiring. HOF is next. More Pro Bowls than career holding penalties
First ballot no doubt! Being a cowboys fan was glad he was drafted by them. Sadly he never got a chance for a Super Bowl ring, let alone a NFCCG appearance! Was hoping he actually would have been traded to a contender this year but unfortunately had season ending surgery. I do plan on being there when he goes to Canton.
He was a total beast and only 7 holding calls in his entire pro career. That is incredible.
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Most of those happened while playing injured this past year.
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Yup. Harrison Smith another likely HOFer.
Need to break our tie with USC and regain our lead in HOFers.
Both should be first ballot
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Man, there's a guy who made a liar out of me....I thought he stunk at ND. Still recall
....in the 2007 scUM game late in the 4th qtr. ND is up; scUM driving, QB Tate Forcier (true frosh) scrambling out of the pocket, all Smith had to do is make the tackle on 4th down, Forcier fakes him out of his jock!! scUM wins....I guess if you can get to the NFL and get the proper coaching, you can make it....good for Smith!
He was ND's Rodney Harrison
Would come up in the slot, bounce around. Brilliant FB mind. A true AA.
Also, Brian Smith was mostly a solid player for us
We were counting too much on the "silent commits" in that class of 2007, and ended up getting burnt by it. Supposedly, Martez Wilson, Chris Donald, Aurellius Benn, Chris Little and Greg Little were committed, but reneged close to the end or even on signing day. Justin Trattou had de-committed before that as well.
Brian Smith was a last second pickup for us, since Charlie Weis had correctly guessed that Chris Donald (our main target at LB) wouldn't commit, and ended up playing a good bit all four of his years.
He wasn't the best, but given his situation, did a decent job for us, and wasn't solely to blame for Michigan's win. There were plenty of opportunities to win 2009's game against Michigan.
The biggest one, arguably, was when Michael Floyd had to leave the game to get his knee stitched up, and Robby Toma came in his place. Toma missed an easy 4th down catch that would have iced the game because he ran the short route incorrectly.
Brian Smith??? You gotta be kidding me....he was at best a Division II prospect.
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It was Shaq Evans who ran the wrong route on the play you're referring to. And yes, it was a killer.
I do agree with you that Smith was a pretty solid player, but his lack of assignment discipline was a consistent issue until the last half of his senior season; constant over-pursuit and crashing down to leave gaps. But he was playing really good football by the end of 2010.
Regarding those commits you mentioned: That was definitely true. All were in the fold until that dreadful Sugar Bowl against L.S.U., which ended up costing us big on the recruiting front.
That was Darius Fleming. Smith (Brian), as usual, blew his responsibility and crashed down.
Fleming slipped and fell to the outside (he had contain), leaving a massive lane for Forcier to run through. Keep in mind, there were still 14 minutes on the clock, so while that play hurt and gave them an 11-point lead, it wasn't the clincher.
Wrong Smith
Your recollection of the 2009 UM game, though was fairly accurate. Darius Fleming (DE) forced Forcier out of the pocket, and Brian Smith (LB) should have tackled him, but Brian Smith missed badly.
Stunk? You gotta be kidding? Watch this vid.
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Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bc5MPrEC_2g
Also a true team player
We were thin at linebacker in 2009, and Charlie Weis asked Harrison Smith to man one of the LB spots.
Smith did so without hesitation, even if his true position were at safety, and he saved the Washington game that year by nailing the receiver with a hard hit at the end of the game.
You mean 2009
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You were wrong then and you are wrong now
You were one of many on this board that took shots at Harrison. It's good that you acknowledge your error.
But to attribute his NFL success to coaching is equally absurd. The guy is simply a great athlete.
He's got the wrong guy. He's thinking of Brian Smith.
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