MOBILE, Ala. – University of South Alabama football tight end Collier Smith recently sat down with USAJaguars.com to discuss his journey to South, being more of a conventional tight end and what it means to him to represent South Alabama and the football program, among other things.

Smith, a senior from Birmingham, Ala., has been a member of the Jaguar program since the 2015 season after transferring from Robert Morris. During that time he has appeared in all 32 games in which South Alabama has competed appearing both on the offensive and special teams units. Against Appalachian State earlier this season, Smith recorded his first catch, a 13-yard reception, and had an 11-yard reception at Georgia Southern. He has been a key blocker from the tight end position during his time in Mobile.

You started your college career off at Robert Morris.  If you could go through how you started there and eventually ended up at South.
"RMU was my only Division I offer out of high school so I took it. I really liked [Robert Morris head] Coach [John] Banaszak and Coach [Scott] Farison. They made me feel valuable to the program. I played a little bit as a freshman and didn't redshirt. I made some really good friends up there, all of us were from the south so we went through the cold together. It just didn't feel like home though. I don't have any regrets about going up there; I needed to see that, but I was away from everything I'd know. It was the first time I had been that far north and that far away from my family and friends. It was just hard to block out all those factors and focus on the game. I couldn't play to my potential up there.

"I had been in communication [during the recruiting process] with South in high school, but I never got an offer. I knew [former Jaguar head] Coach [Joey] Jones and my family knew him personally. He told me that if things didn't work out [at Robert Morris] I could give it a shot down here. We didn't have a very good season at RMU that year and that made me think things over. When I came home that summer, I prayed about it and talked it over with my family, and I just felt like the best thing for me was to be closer to home and South had good football. They provided me an opportunity to play so that's what I did; I gave it a shot. I've loved it ever since."

Your role at the tight end position more of a traditional blocker rather that a receiver, and one that you excel at doing. Talk about the pride you take in at filling that role and what you attribute your effectiveness too.
"I always played on the defensive side of the ball growing up and I played linebacker my freshman year of college. Football has always been about hitting somebody and getting in the action early. I've always taken pride in the physical part of the game. I love the game because of that physical fight with someone to see who's going to come out on top when it comes down to strength, speed and want to. [Former Jag assistant] Coach [Chase] Smith brought me over to tight end and made me feel like I could play the position; he really worked with me after practice on my blocking techniques because I was just running into people at first.

"Having a blocking tight end is a vital piece of coach [Steve] Campbell's offense and it just comes down to that sacrifice for your teammates and putting other before yourself. Somebody's got to do it and it's got to be me. I've always appreciated offensive linemen and what running backs have to go through. To be part of that process and be like an o-lineman but also have the chance to get out and do other stuff is what I love doing. My favorite moments when I first started out at the position were the goal line plays when we only had to get one or two yards. The defense knew what was coming and the running backs knew they were going to be running behind me. They knew that if I got into the end zone, they were getting into the end zone. That hard-nosed, tooth-and-nail, bring the hammer mentality was what it's all about."

You came to South as a walk-on and earned a scholarship last season. What did it mean to you personally to receive that scholarship?
"That was goal from day one, to prove my worth to the team, to the coaching staff and to my teammates; I wanted to show them that I was an important part of the team. To me, getting that scholarship showed me that everybody knew that I was valuable, that's how I knew that I had done enough to prove that and that I now had an opportunity to lead. It's very hard to lead teammates when you aren't on scholarship. I thought I might get it sooner, but I stopped focusing on the scholarship part of it and just focused on being the best player I could be; that's when everything started to fall into place for me. Not worrying about selfish needs or the pride about saying that I was on scholarship."

What does it mean to you to represent South Alabama and this program?
"I love South football and I've loved it since I got here. To be able to wear that name on my chest is a dream come true. This is my last season and I want to do the best that I possibly can do to represent the team name like I would represent my family's name. It's important to me and being part of this program is something that I will cherish forever. I would hate to look back on it and say that I wish I would have represented better or that I had had better character here or there.

"Coming from Briarwood Christian and playing under coach [Fred] Yancey, they really did a good job of making us see the bigger picture outside of football, and that everybody is watching and listening to you whether you know it or not. You need to always be in a position to represent the team and yourself well and glorify God. That's something I've always tried to think about and remember when I'm doing anything with Jag football on my chest."

How have you improved not only since last year but since you arrived on campus?
"I know I've come a long way just from being a guy who got in on goal line situations to one that now plays 60-70 snaps a game. Not a lot technique wise has changed for me. I feel like the biggest change for me has been the confidence factor and knowing that I've put in the work and done the steps necessary to go out and get my assignment done so that I can dominate somebody on the line of scrimmage.  

"Everyone his the sled after practice and everyone goes over their techniques trying to perfect those things at practice, but what it comes down to especially at my position is just knowing that you can get it done. Just remembering all of the sweat that you've gone through during the spring, summer and every day at practice, and relying on the fact that you've worked hard. When you get out there on game day, it's easy to feel and know that you are prepared and confident you can get the job done."

You are from Birmingham, which is about four hours away.  Does your family get to come watch you play much?
"My parents make an effort to come to every game. They haven't missed one yet and they should be at the rest of them this season. If they aren't able to be there, they'll be watching it. Football is important to them. My brother played at Liberty University and they made it to all of his games too. They've always supported the both of us."

What are you wanting to do after your football career is over?
"I've already got my finance degree and I'm currently in the master's program for accounting. After that's done I'll have two degrees. I would like to see what internships I can get close to home and what doors open up from there. I'd like to end up working for a CPA firm somewhere, but I think it would be beneficial for me to get with a major company and possibly do corporate tax or something tax related."

Who has had the biggest influence on your life?
"There's two people that have really influenced my football career. The first is my dad, he's never cared about the score. His thing is that if he's at the game he wants to be entertained by how I played the game. In high school, it was always about trying to knock someone's head off because my dad was watching. After the game whether we won or lost, he was always proud and that kept me motivated to do better and give it everything I had.

"The second person is Otis Leveret at Modern Day Fitness. He's the guy I trained with in high school. He was tough and he really helps kids understand it's not about the talent you're born with, but rather what you can make happen if you put in enough work and effort. When other people were saying that I wouldn't make it and others didn't want to give me a chance, he helped me see that it wasn't about what they said, but that it was about making that opportunity for yourself through hard work. Because of what he instilled in me at those workouts is the reason I'm playing college football today."

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