Andre Smith

Infobox NCAA Athlete
name = Andre Smith

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college = University of Alabama
conference = SEC
sport = Football
position = OT
class = Junior
major =
career_start = 2006
nickname =
height_ft = 6
height_in = 4
weight_lb = 330
nationality = flag|United States
birth_date = birth date and age|1987|1|25
birth_place = Birmingham, Alabama
highschool = Huffman High School, Birmingham, Alabama
career_highlights = Y
awards = 2005 Bobby Dodd Award
awards = 2008 Playboy All American

Andre Smith, Jr. (born January 25, 1987 in Birmingham, Alabama) is an American football offensive tackle for the Alabama Crimson Tide. Some believe he might be the most dominant offensive lineman in college football since Orlando Pace played at Ohio State in 1994-1996. [SportingNews.com [http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?p=1666023 Throwback recruits] ] Smith was recognized as a 2008 Playboy All-American and named to the 2008 Outland Trophy watch list by the Football Writers Association of America. He is considered by many to be one of the best offensive tackles for the 2009 NFL Draft. [ [http://walterfootball.com/draft2009OT.php 2009 NFL Draft prospects rankings] ]

Personal

Andre Smith is the son of Andre, Sr. and Nesa Smith. His younger brother Christian Smith currently plays wide receiver and cornerback at Hampton University. He is also a cousin of Dominic Lee, a former defensive lineman for the Alabama Crimson Tide.

High school career

Playing at Huffman High School, Smith was considered by most recruiting analysts as the nation’s top offensive line prospects in the class of 2006 as well as one of the most dominant offensive line prospects in the last decade. [ [http://alabama.rivals.com/viewrank.asp?ra_key=1162 Rivals.com Top100 Class of 2006] ] He was selected “Mr. Football” by the Alabama Sports Writers Association in 2005 after registering 88 pancake blocks his senior season. He was the first offensive lineman selected in the association’s 23-year history. Smith was also named the Class 6A Lineman of the Year and was one of four finalists for the 2005 Walter Payton Award, given to the nation’s top prep player. He was also a "USA Today" All-American and participated in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl. He won the Bobby Dodd Award and was a two-time All-State selection.

College career

Freshman season

Smith started each of the first 12 games at left tackle as a true freshman during the 2006 football season. Smith led the Crimson Tide with 62 knockdowns. He recorded the most knockdowns in three games with a season-high nine against Duke, eight against Florida International and seven against LSU. He had six games with five or more knockdowns. Smith led all Alabama players with 800 snaps. He was one of only six players with over 700 total snaps. He recorded a season high of 80 at Arkansas in his first career road game. He played at least 65 snaps in nine of the 12 games and had four contests with over 70 snaps. He also had one tackle against Mississippi State.

References