To Hell with objectivity and professionalism.
Fred Smoot is my favorite football player. Ever.
The King of Smack Talk is back in Starkville for the weekend, and I’m more excited now than I was for the “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I” premiere last night.
Who is Smoot, you ask? Well, before I tell you, you should know that I think less of you for having to ask. Now that’s out of the way, Smoot is one of the greatest players to put on a Bulldog uniform. An All-American his senior year, “His Smootness” played cornerback (for you non-football types, that means he kept the other team from catching the football) for Mississippi State in the 1999 and 2000 seasons. In his words, “Two-thirds of the Earth is covered by water. The other third is covered by me.”
The Jackson native was the centerpiece of one of the most impressive defenses Bulldog Nation has ever seen in that ’99 season, and he even had a mildly-serious Heisman campaign. Surely, the fans appreciate a talented football player, but Smoot was more than that.
Smoot was the greatest trash-talker to ever play the game, and he loved MSU. To some, our institution has a reputation for being run over by the Big Boys of college football. Many view MSU as a pushover, both on the field and off. MSU has been held down and disrespected by everyone from the SEC and bowl game executives to opposing fans, coaches and players.
Fred Smoot is the William Wallace (that’s the guy Mel Gibson played in Braveheart, folks) of MSU football. As the Bulldogs were on the rise and fresh off an SEC Championship game, Smoot led the charge against the rest of college football. He demanded you give him and the Bulldogs respect, and he earned it. He did it by talking trash.
“I love the game, man,” Smoot once said. “I like to deliver a little sermon while I’m dishing out punishment on my side of the field.”
Going through old Smoot quotes is like re-reading Harry Potter; I could do it 100 times, and it would never get old. He was fearless, and he backed it up.
In 1999, MSU went 9-2 and Georgia went 7-4. Yet, UGA got picked over MSU for a bowl game. Rather than roll over and take it,  Smoot spoke up.
“Man, we went 9-2. Georgia went 7-4. They might as well have put us on BET on Christmas Eve in the We Got Screwed Bowl,” Smoot smacked.
Once, an opposing receiver said he was going to have a “breakout game” against my man, Smoot.
“He said this was his breakout game,” Smoot said after the win. “He broke out alright. What, five catches, seven yards? Must have been a rash he broke out with.”
When Smoot was playing, the Egg Bowl was played every Thanksgiving as a prime-time, after dinner event televised nationally by ESPN, and it was the Sultan of Smack’s favorite game.
“Beating Mississippi on Thanksgiving is better than turkey and gravy,” Smoot said after the 1999 victory.
And you know what? Though the smack talk may lead you to think otherwise, Smoot was what you call a good guy. As allegations swirl about Cam Newton taking money, one of the less-discussed things is he apparently took another student’s essay and put his own name on it. When he got caught, he, allegedly, bought a paper off the internet and turned it in, and he got caught with that, too.
Smoot, on the other hand, was not doing so well in his classes. He was doing so poorly, in fact, that he was academically ineligible for and didn’t play in what is now one of the most well-known bowl games in MSU lore, the 2000 Independence Bowl, called the Snow Bowl by many.
He called it a terrible experience and the worst of his Bulldog career. However, he took it like a man. He didn’t cheat, he didn’t lie and he didn’t steal or do anything else the honor code forbids. Sure, he asked professors if there was anything he could do or any extra credit he could earn, but even in one of his worst moments, he was still honorable.
Finally, it’s time for the return of the Smoot. He’ll be at the game tomorrow, and he told Paul Jones of Bulldawgjunction.comhe has a special reason for returning on this date.
“Man, we never beat Arkansas when I was there, and that hurt,” Smoot told BDJ. “That is why I am coming to see us play Arkansas this year, and I will be on the sidelines for that one. I want to witness it first-hand and watch us beat them.”
I’ve discussed cowbells here in The Reflector, but I want to tell you about my favorite Mississippi State tradition. It is a tribute to Smoot.
Whenever Smoot was introduced, walked on the field, was thrown on, defended a pass, made an interception or tackle or ran to the sideline to pump up the crowd, everyone at Davis Wade Stadium let out the same cry: “SMOOOOOOOOOOT!”
To the untrained and uninformed ear, it may sound like the fans were booing. No, they were Smooting.
If you consider yourself a Bulldog, if you call yourself a fan of Mississippi State and if you have ever yelled like H-E-L-L for dear ol’ State, you will chant “SMOOOOOOOOOOT!” at the top of your lungs when you see the biggest talker in Bulldog history.
Fred Smoot is True Maroon.