Globe South Sports

Eagles’ Smith

puts injuries behind

Jeff Smith of Boston College finished the 2008 football campaign second on the team with 727 all-purpose yards. (Winslow Townson for The Boston Globe)


By Justin A. Rice Globe Correspondent / August 20, 2009

NEWTON - Hanging out with Jeff Smith at Duxbury Beach earlier this month, Silver Lake Regional football coach Danna Battista wasn’t at all surprised to see local youngsters approach his former star quarterback.

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Now a senior kickoff-return specialist at Boston College, Smith is practically football royalty on the South Shore. And that is pretty remarkable, considering he has spent as much time sidelined by injuries as he has knifing through defenders.

“They all know who he is,’’ Battista said of the 22-year-old Plympton native, who hopes to play his first full season this fall since he was a true freshman at BC in 2006.

“They absolutely know. They see him on TV and they remember his three years at Silver Lake, his superhuman speed.’’

Smith’s star was never brighter than during his freshman year, against Clemson, when he returned five kicks for 213 yards, including a 96-yard touchdown in a 34-33 double-overtime victory.

After his breakout performance, Smith called Battista from a pizzeria in Allston. The coach asked the big man on campus why he wasn’t partying; he was delighted to hear Smith say, “You know me, Coach; that’s not what I want to do.’’

“I kind of was taking it all in,’’ Smith recalled at BC’s football media day last week. “It was like the first thing I did here. I was really nervous or something; I didn’t know what to do.’’

The 5-foot-9, 198-pound Smith averaged 28 yards per kick return as a freshman, earning second-team All-American honors from the Sporting News.

But he suffered a concussion in training camp his sophomore year and was sidelined the first six games.

He returned for one game, against Bowling Green, before suffering another the week of the Clemson game. Doctors advised him to quit football forever.

Smith confided in Battista during those dark days, especially when he ran into his former coach on visits to Duxbury Beach, where Battista often runs during the offseason.

“He would just tell me to keep my head up, it’s not just me; other people go through this, too, and I can overcome it,’’ said Smith. “He gave me a lot of confidence and helped me get through it.’’

The state record holder in the 200 meters (21.01) while at Silver Lake, Smith decided to pour his energy into the Boston College track team. He not only ran fast for the Eagles, breaking a 20-plus-year-old record in the 100 (10.56 seconds) but was glad to have an outlet for his frustration and to be a part of a team again. But it wasn’t the football team. Smith checked if his scholarship was still available (it was) and if he was healthy enough to rejoin the team (he was) before attending training camp last August.

He finished the 2008 football campaign second on the team with 727 all-purpose yards despite playing only 10 games. A hamstring injury kept him out of the other four games.

“It’s been a tough road for him,’’ Battista said. “He’s got his shot right now to succeed and have some success.’’

Battista is excited that Smith has an opportunity, although it’s unclear how much playing time he will receive beyond special teams.

He is third on the depth chart at tailback behind Montel Harris (5-foot-10, 192 pounds) and Josh Haden (5-8, 182 pounds).

Gary Tranquill, Eagles first-year offensive coordinator, has said all three backs will play.

“They’re not big guys; you can’t give them the ball 25 times a game, I don’t think,’’ he said. “[Smith] gives us something we probably don’t have as a team: speed. He’s got long-play capability.

“Another thing Jeff brings to the table is he can throw the football. He was a quarterback, so we might mess around a little bit.’’

Smith is not focusing on where he’ll play; he’s just focused on playing a full season.

And considering how little he’s played the last few years, Smith isn’t looking past this season.

When he was informed that Battista recently received a letter from the Oakland Raiders asking about his character, Smith said, “That’s fine; that’s cool. They probably send letters to a lot of people.’’

A few people have told Smith to give the NFL a shot; others tell him to find a realistic career.

“I don’t know what to do, to tell you the truth,’’ said Smith, who didn’t rule out coaching. “I just want to get through the season first, then worry about it afterwards.’’

Either way, Smith has options he didn’t have a short time ago.

“That’s the thing,’’ Smith said, “that’s a good thing.’’

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