What he did: In a football career that spanned from Clarke Central High School in Athens, to junior college in Oklahoma, to the University of Tennessee and then Atlanta Falcons in the NFL and beyond, Chuck Smith had plenty of nicknames. But perhaps the best one was "Face."
Said the pass-rush specialist, “Deion Sanders used to call me that. Why? Well, because I have a big face.’’
Smith had a big football career at all levels and is credited for making one of the biggest plays in Falcons history during the 1998 season in the NFC Championship game against Minnesota. The Falcons were down 20-7 late in the first half when Smith knocked the ball out of Vikings quarterback Randall Cunningham’s hand. Teammate Travis Hall recovered it and Atlanta scored quickly to get back in a game they would win in overtime, leading to their only Super Bowl appearance.
It all started, though, in Athens where Smith played for legendary coach Billy Henderson at Clarke Central. In addition to Henderson who would win 285 games during his 35-year career, on that Clarke staff were assistants Ed Dudley and Rayvan Teague, who would go on to build great programs at Walton and Carrollton High Schools, respectively. Smith then played two years in junior college at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M before signing to play for Johnny Majors at Tennessee. Smith became a star for the Volunteers, playing on the 1990 SEC Championship team which beat Virginia in the Sugar Bowl and then went to the Fiesta Bowl his senior season. During the offseason in Knoxville, he was taken under the wing of the great pass-rusher Reggie White, who was back at his alma mater working out.
Two months later, Smith was selected in the second round (51st overall) of the 1992 draft by the Falcons. Very outspoken and a fan favorite, he became one of the best pass-rushers in the team history, collecting 58 1/2 sacks in eight seasons, third on the all-time list behind Claude Humphrey (94 1/2) and John Abraham (68 1/2). Smith also influenced the club’s philosophy in the front office when in 1996 he was suspended for one game by then-coach June Jones after saying, “We’ve got to come here and focus on defense. We need a head man that’s going to be a defensive-minded man. Right now that’s not the case. Until that happens, we’ll be a scrub defense.”
The Falcons went 3-13 that season, Jones was fired and Dan Reeves was brought in. The next season, the Falcons improved to 7-9. Smith was named the NFL’s “Unsung Hero” and made the All-Pro team with his mentor, White. He was the leader of the defensive line during the “Dirty Birds’’ season of 1998, the Falcons going a franchise best 14-2 and beating San Francisco and the Vikings in the postseason before losing to Denver in Super Bowl XXXIII.
Smith came back with a 10-sack season in ’99 before finishing his career the next season in Carolina, when his season was cut short by injuries. Since retiring, Smith has been busy including working as an assistant coach at Tennessee and on various radio and TV shows. As he did when he was as a player, Smith has been active in the community, serving on the executive board of the Boy Scouts of America, the advisory board of the Gwinnett County School system and the Gwinnett Medical Center Concussion advisory board. He also just completed a three-year term on the athletic board at the University of Tennessee.
Where he lives: Smith, 45, lives in Suwanee. He has been married to Mynique for 14 years and has two sons (Charles IV and Maddox) and a daughter (Giavani).
What he does: In addition to work in the media, Smith runs his own company called "D Line Inc.,'' which he began in 2002. He specializes in high-performance skill training for football players of all ages.
On knocking the ball away from Cunningham in the NFC title game: "At the time, I was thinking that somebody needed to make a big play so I decided to take a calculated risk. I knew they were going to throw a pass and I noticed that (offensive tackle) Todd Steussie was rocking back in his stance and I thought they were going to (snap) on 'One.' I thought I could bull-rush and the timing was perfect. Randall had a long release and I was blessed to get it. The funny thing was when I finished my career in Carolina, Steussie was on that team.''
On finishing his career in Carolina: "I hated seeing myself in a Panthers uniform. That was my rival with the Falcons and I was going to a team whose fans truly disliked me. When I was with the Falcons, I tried to destroy those guys. But then I am there and so is Steussie. We talked about that play all the time and he said Minnesota has always connected him to that play and loss.''
On the Super Bowl season: "It was magical. I look back at that team and think how underrated we were. Nobody gave us a chance to beat Minnesota. But we all worked really hard together and we had a lot of tough guys. We had the little showbiz thing with the 'Dirty Bird'' thing but we all felt we were public people and that we cared about the city of Atlanta. Plus, I was from Athens, Keith (Brooking) had played in Gwinnett County, Jessie (Tuggle) was from Griffin. There was a lot of local flavor.''
On being suspended by Jones: "The fans were behind me and I think the organization was too. Shoot, we traded our first-round pick for Eric Metcalf (in 1995) and we could have taken Warren Sapp in that draft. Look, the teams that are there at the end of the season are the ones that play defense.''
On playing for Henderson at Clarke Central: "The coaching I received in high school was pretty special. Coach Henderson, Ed Dudley, Rayvan Teague and on and on. And if not for us at Clarke, I don't think Gwinnett County would have ever been the great football county they are today. Gwinnett County football was formed from the butt-whippings we gave them on the football field. There was (coach) Dave Hunter at Brookwood who realized that they would never be able to compete if they didn't match the training and coaching we were getting at Clarke.''
On Reggie White's influence on him: "Reggie saw me in front of the dorm and asked if I would go to church with him and his wife and that he would teach me how to be a pass-rusher. Well, I didn't have anything dress clothes and just some Tennessee garb but I got up at 5:30 (a.m.) and a big white Mercedes came around the corner and picked me up. It changed my life." '
On teaching young players: "Football has become a multi-billion dollar sport but the game on the field is just a small part of it. I enjoy working with players and teaching them the right way to play. I was lucky to be taught by a lot of great players and coaches and I want to do the same thing.''
About the Author
