The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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86 THE WOLVERINE NOVEMBER 2017 WHERE ARE THEY NOW? back on track and super excited to get back out there." Smith experienced his best season as a Wolverine in 2010, rushing 136 times for 601 yards and five touch‑ downs. He tacked on 15 catches for 130 yards and two scores. Michigan wasn't faring as well, a porous defense allowing 30 or more points in seven conference games, including 65 in a win over Illinois. That made for a gloomy approach to the 2011 Gator Bowl, in which the Wolverines lost to Mississippi State 52‑14. "I knew," Smith noted, regard‑ ing an impending coaching change. "When it really struck was at our bowl game. We had a sense it was going to be a transition." That could have meant very bad news for Smith, who is built for the spread. Brady Hoke's arrival, in‑ cluding his stated preference for the power game, could have caused a sophomore back to audible out of Ann Arbor. He insists he never considered it. Smith loved Michigan, and Michigan football, and wasn't going anywhere. "I'm a very versatile player, as far as passing, catching, running," he said. "I knew I could fit my talents in any type of offense. In that way, I wasn't worried about any transition." He did invest extra effort into be‑ coming a top‑notch blocking back on pass protection, again despite his stature. "I was used as a scat back, a third‑ down back," Smith said. "I made sure [quarterback] Denard Robinson was protected when the blitzes came, from the Michigan States and the Ohio States and all of their packages. I was aware of everything. "[Running backs coach] Fred Jack‑ son and I did a lot of great break‑ downs of game films. He was a major help and a major key for me in using my skill sets." Not that he didn't get challenged — both physically and verbally. "Plenty of times," he said, with a chuckle. "Those big guys up front, they see a little guy in the back, they're laughing. A couple of guys gave me a little bit, in the rivalry games. "There's a lot of excitement, a lot of animosity that goes on. But I got them back. I could see them coming way before they could see me." One highlight under Hoke in‑ volved the 2011 battle for The Little Brown Jug. "One of my major accomplish‑ ments was being in The Big House with that Brown Jug, with the triple play on touchdowns — throwing one, catching one and running one," Smith recalled. He still gets approached about the Jadeveon Clowney hit in the 2013 Outback Bowl, one that sent his hel‑ met flying but left his head intact. Like any other interruptions in his progress, he took that one in stride. He didn't get drafted into the NFL, and eventually wearied of fruitless tryouts for pro teams, both in the United States and Canada. "I gave it my all. I knew what type of skills I had and what type of speed," he said. "I'm not the type of guy to beat myself up and try to climb over bridges I can't climb. "I gave it 110 percent for a couple of years, then sat back and looked at reality, looked at the Michigan de‑ gree I have and thought about what I really wanted to do after." Smith went home to Pahokee, an impoverished area, and thought long and hard about a vision beginning to form. "I saw it is the winter vegetable capital of the world," he said. "I wanted to do something inspira‑ tional, sustainable, something dif‑ ferent. Not something in sports, but something off the field." Thus began his first garden, with the help of Urban Greenworks. Since then, he's pursued a number of other projects with Sutherland and now has another former Wolverine, Ray‑ mon Taylor, as a team member. They leverage the football connec‑ tion with a healthy lifestyle message to reach others. "It's getting the kids excited about eating healthy fruits and vegetables," he said. "Off the field, it's teaching them how to work together in teams, and seeing how organically fresh produce is grown, the whole process. It's learning about each other. "You see the connections we have with each other and enjoy that cama‑ raderie. You learn about healthy food. It's shocking to me how people react. "These kids know who we are. It's another thing when we're working side by side, building their community. When we build it, they always remem‑ ber that spot, or remember their favor‑ ite food, where they put that sweat equity in. It's such a rewarding thing." Smith still tailgates around Michi‑ gan Stadium and wouldn't mind up‑ ping the local game there as well. "I'm trying to get everybody eating healthy and get the awareness out there," he said. "There's a lot of bad food out there. I've been working on it." ❏ Smith currently serves as co-director of Team Gardens, a non-profit outfit looking to provide healthy food for neighborhoods and reach out to urban youth. PHOTO COURTESY TEAMGARDENS.ORG/VINCENT SMITH