Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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not he suffered nerve damage as part of the ACL and LCL injury he incurred in the Fiesta Bowl Jan. 1. In his first public comments since the injury and subsequent surgery, Smith did little to clarify the extent of the situation. When asked whether there is nerve damage, Smith first replied, "No. The nerve wasn't stressed at all. It's just a healing game. It's a process. I'll be back 100 percent. We just don't know when." Before the NFL Combine, Smith tweeted a video of himself walking while wearing an Ankle Foot Ortho‑ sis, which he said is to "help me walk while everything heals." Use of the brace typically assists with weakness in the ankle related to an injury of the peroneal nerve. "I feel great," he said. "There's no soreness in the knee. There's no pain. … It's just a matter of the recovery process. I don't know when the nerve and everything will heal. "It's just a matter of me taking it day by day and controlling what I can con‑ trol. But I'm having a nice time here." That comment, in which he stated he does not know when the nerve will heal, prompted a later question to clar‑ ify the extent of nerve damage. "It's something where all the team doctors have visited with me and Dr. [Dan] Cooper who did my surgery, there's a report that all the team doc‑ tors have," he said. "I don't want to give the wrong information out." Estimates of Smith's return to the football field have varied anywhere from him being ready for week one of the NFL season to him missing his entire rookie year. "That's the goal," he said of being back by the start of the regular sea‑ son. "As soon as possible. I can't tell when I'll be back, but I'll be back 100 percent. "I'm hoping to go top 10 [in the NFL Draft]. I view myself as the best player in the draft. It's just a matter of waiting and enjoying the process and control‑ ling what I can control. I'm having a blast with all the fellas out here." ESPN reported that multiple NFL teams made the decision to fail Smith on his physical after his exam Feb. 26, and sources with three teams at the combine said they do not intend to draft Smith. ESPN's Todd McShay re‑ leased an updated mock draft March 2 that dropped Smith out of the first round and listed him sixth among top available remaining players. If Smith falls out of the first round, he would be the recipient of a $5 mil‑ lion loss of value insurance policy that he said he applied for prior to his ju‑ nior season at Notre Dame. Smith vows that he will return and be just as strong of a player as he was during his three seasons at Notre Dame. "It's a long‑term decision for who‑ ever drafts me," he said. "I'm a guy that will be around a while playing at an elite level, an impact player. It's great watching a guy like [Rams run‑ ning back] Todd Gurley do it last year and get in midseason form. I'm look‑ ing forward to the process." Gurley suffered a similar injury dur‑ ing the fall of his final season at Geor‑ gia in 2014. "[The injury] tests your patience,"