In the end, Greg Smith said his decision to leave Georgia Tech after last season and enroll at Jacksonville State wasn’t that difficult.
First of all, he was about to graduate from the Institute with a degree in management.
Secondly, he was going to begin work on his masters and still play football.
Thirdly, he would be just 1-1/2 hours away from home.
“That’s an opportunity you can’t pass up,” Smith said.
He’ll get to come home and see his old teammates and coaches when Tech opens its season against the Gamecocks Saturday at 1 p.m. at Bobby Dodd Stadium.
“It’s crazy,” Smith said. “It’s surreal to go against the people in my life from the past four years. It’s a dream. It doesn’t seem real. Can’t really put it in words.”
Smith, a 6-foot-1 wide receiver, was a productive player during his career at Tech, even leading the team in 2007 with 37 catches for 588 yards. But when coach Chan Gailey was let go and Paul Johnson hired, Smith was moved to A-back during spring practice.
He did well there, averaging 7.5 yards per carry and 18.5 per reception last year. But he didn’t play in the last three games due to coach’s decision and when the season was over, Smith said he sat down and thought about his future.
He decided that he wanted to further this education and, yes, he wanted to catch a few more passes, though he said that was a small factor in the decision. Being able to get a masters in public administration with a concentration in emergency management was a much bigger factor.
“I want to uplift the world,” Smith said. “That’s one of the strong principles I believe in. I’ve always liked helping people.”
Lining up against Smith will be several players who know him well, including Jason Hill (his old Douglass High teammate), Martin Frierson (his old roommate) and Roddy Jones, who said Smith was one of the first players to reach out to him when he arrived at Tech.
“He helped me out with everything,” Jones said. “It’s just going to be weird to see him with a different jersey lined up against us. I wish him the best of luck. I hope he has a good game ... well, a semi-good game. It’s going to be fun.”
Smith sees no reason he should have any hard feelings and he certainly has no regrets. He said he loves his new school. But he is excited about what’s to happen.
“I love all my players back at Tech,” Smith said. “I had good relationships with everybody, even the fans. I could give a million names of the people I’m cool with. I’m excited to go back. To me it’s a homecoming.
“It’ll be a good time back in Bobby Dodd.”
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