The Buckeye Battle Cry will be counting down the Top 25 players of the past decade all spring/summer. Every Monday and Thursday, Jim will be announcing a new player. Our #1 player will be presented on Monday, August 30th. Three days later, the 2010 season officially begins. To view the previous entries in our Top 25, click here.
Will Smith (2001-2003)
Will Smith was a disruptive force at defensive end for the Buckeyes during his three seasons as a starter. His outstanding blend of athleticism and size allowed him to wreak havoc in the opposing backfield as well as to drop back in pass coverage.
Smith was the star and focal point of the dominating defensive lines in 2002 and 2003 that crushed opponent’s souls as Tressel Ball ground their hopes of winning into dust.
Like most starters on the 2002 team, I remember Smith most for his performance in the National Championship game. By sacking Ken Dorsey on the very first play, Smith set the tone for the rest of the game and announced to the world that Ohio State wasn’t going to get shoved around. Happy times ensued.
The attack mentality of the defensive line and the defense in general during the 2002 and 2003 seasons, with Sill Smith at the forefront, were truly a joy to watch. At times it seemed that Ohio State was blitzing every single play, but many times it was just the illusion of a blitz created by Ohio State’s front four smashing through the offensive line so often and so quickly.
More often than not, Will Smith was one of the players breaking through, and the record books prove it.
Smith has the 5th most career tackles for loss at Ohio State with 45.5, the six most career sacks with 22, the third most tackles for loss in a season with 20, and the sixth most sacks in a season with 10.5, both recorded in 2003.
While 2003 was Smith’s best year as a Buckeye, and a year that he earned First Team All-American honors, the fact that he was a consistent starter and star for the Buckeyes for three years, and chose to come back in 2003 rather than leave early for the NFL is worthy of acclaim as well.
Smith was drafted in the first round of the 2004 NFL draft by the New Orleans Saints. He has been one of the best defensive lineman in the NFL over the course of his professional career, and was a starter and key contributor to the Super Bowl winning squad last season.
For embodying the attack mentality that made the Silver Bullets so fun to watch and so effective in the first part of the decade, for his First Team All-American season in 2003, for being one of the best ever at Ohio State, and for carrying that excellence with him to the NFL, Will Smith is #11 on our countdown of the top 25 Buckeye of the last decade.
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