College football felt horrible about losing Jaylen Waddle of Alabama to an ankle injury; however, it is more so proud of having an opportunity to see the maturation of DeVonta Smith throughout his career.
Whether it is his teammates, coaches, local media or national media, Smith has created a lot of buzz to be included in this year’s Heisman Memorial Trophy race. If his game-winning touchdown reception on 2nd and 26 versus Georgia in the 2018 College Football Playoff National Championship matchup was his lone contribution, it would have been enough to call him a legend.
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Nevertheless, the senior from Louisiana has become more than that.
He has transformed himself into being arguably the best player in college football. Smith cannot be stopped or slowed down, and his journey to be the No. 1 receiver taken in the 2021 NFL Draft continued on last week. For a second straight season, the former four-star owned the defensive secondary of Louisiana State University. After collecting seven passes for 213 yards and two scores in 2019, he caused Ed Orgeron to have a meltdown on the sideline at Tiger Stadium. The 6-foot-1, 175-pounder hauled in a game-high eight receptions for 231 yards and three touchdowns. He beat the coverage with speed on his long scores of 65 and 61 yards, but his 20-yard score was a thing of beauty. Smith’s concentration, hands, balance and awareness all were in full effect.
He snatched the ball with one hand and got both feet in bounds. Smith had the commentary duo of Brad Nessler and Gary Danielson of CBS absolutely speechless. His performance earned him Offensive Player of the Week from the Southeastern Conference, as he assisted the Crimson Tide to a 55-17 win. In his final meeting with the top school of his home state, Smith propelled Alabama to history as its 55 points were the most allowed by the Tigers in the series since it started in 1895.
Standout Performance.
🗒️: https://t.co/hQ6lPHIb7o#BamaFactor #RollTide pic.twitter.com/e8K126A6Ea
— Alabama Football (@AlabamaFTBL) December 7, 2020
Through two seasons as a starter, Smith is responsible for 444 yards and five touchdowns on 15 catches against LSU.
He is a 1,000-yard receiver (1,305) for a second straight year.
Along with the SEC, Jim Nagy and Reese’s Senior Bowl Committee named Smith as its Senior of the Week on offense.
This week’s Senior of the Week on Offense is @DeVontaSmith_6 from @AlabamaFTBL – Reeled in 8 catches for 231 yds, and 3 TDs in the #RollTide win over LSU 55-17.
🐘🐘🐘#TheDraftStartsInMOBILE pic.twitter.com/OEOzu34eYk— Reese’s Senior Bowl (@seniorbowl) December 7, 2020
Nagy, the Executive Director of the event, considered Smith as the Tide’s ‘most complete’ wide receiver last year.
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Despite the legendary playmakers at receiver that have come through Alabama, Smith is 30 receptions (198) and 49 receiving yards away (3,414) from tying Amari Cooper for most all-time. Cooper ended his tenure with 228 catches and 3,463 yards.
Smith currently has the career record for touchdowns catches at 38. Also, he needs 44 receptions (80), 422 yards (1,305) and one touchdown (15) to tie Cooper’s single-season mark set in 2014. The former standout received the Fred Biletnikoff Award that year, following his performance of 124 catches for 1,727 yards and 16 scores. Smith has one regular season game left (Arkansas) and potentially three postseason games — College Football Playoff included — to rewrite history and put his name on everything.
He leads college football in receiving yards and is tied for first in touchdowns.
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Stephen M. Smith is the managing editor and senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @CoachingMSmith.
