The Cardinal Countdown: 34 Days Until Kickoff

A quick side note before I jump in today. Not sure if it was just a slow news day, the fact that we were exactly 5 weeks from football or a combination of the two, but yesterdays post was one of the most shared posts in the 4 year history of me doing this countdown. Just wanted to say I appreciate it and thanks for checking them out each day.

Back at it.

#34 Jeremy Smith

Class: Sophomore

Ht/Wt: 6-2/225

Position: Running back

Hometown: Hammond, CA

Twitter: N/A

Thoughts: To me, Smith was one of the more exciting additions to the team this past season as the #4 JUCO RB was getting looks from Notre Dame and Alabama before picking UofL last December. Jeremy has the size and strength to play a major factor in the Cards run game taking on the role of a bruiser back compared to that of projected starter Radcliff. (Although, not many are signing up to try and tackle Brandon in the open field either) I found it interesting that to begin the Spring Game Radcliff, Smith and LJ Scott were all part of the RED team. I understand the concept of wanting to see them perform behind the first team O-line, but splitting them up would have allowed for more opportunities and a greater peak into how they matched up against the first team defense. Smith played well for the RED squad with 10 carries for 58 yards and a touchdown, but when he shifted over to the WHITE team his impact was minimal. (4 carries for 6 yards) A combination of second team offensive lineman and going up against a brutal front seven will do that, but that’s probably more reflective of what he’ll see each week in the ACC. If we're calling this "team swap" for Smith a litmus test for both units I think it was successful in showcasing some areas to improve for both him and the O-line and proving the definsive front is all it's stacked up to be. 

I think Jeremy will surprise some people during fall camp and the three headed monster (possibly four is Malin Jones plays well) is going to be tough to gameplan for this season. Radcliff emerged as a true starter last year and he will not give that role up, but we all know how Petrino spreads the love when it comes to ball carriers and as we saw last year, how you perform in practice plays a huge role into who gets the touches (Dom Brown disappearance). Even if Smith doesn’t go crazy this year with the stable of backs we currently have he still has another two years of eligibility left and could become extremely important in the seasons to come. Without a doubt he is one to watch for moving forward.

If you don’t want to watch all 6 minutes of highlight tape, fast forward to about 2:10 and check out that run. That’s one reason he’s on campus.

Sweet Tweet: Smith used to have a twitter account (@ ChauniW) but I believe it is no longer active. This of course got me thinking about things I used to rely on but are no longer “active” in my everyday life. The big one that jumps out to me are home phones. I realize they are still in use but not as prominent as before. I felt like it was almost a rite of passage when growing up to have to pick up the house phone, call a girl you like on her house phone and then ask her mom or dad if she was home or if she could come to the phone. Was that not the most terrifying 10 seconds in your life? Nowadays, every 8 year old has a cell phone and there is no “nightmare parental buffer” to deal with. Of course, as we got older we found the secret to beating the house phone jitters…don’t ask for her phone number, get that AIM screen name.

My Buddy List kept me busy for hours…unless of course my parents needed to use the phone.

“Mom, hang up the phone I’m trying to use the computer!”