James Arthur Smith (born July 20, 1955) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

player. He played college football for the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

from 1974 to 1976. He also played wide receiver for six seasons for the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...

from 1977 to 1982 before starring on the Birmingham Stallions of the rival

United States Football League The United States Football League (USFL) was a professional American football league that played for three seasons, 1983 through 1985. The league played a spring/summer schedule in each of its active seasons. The 1986 season was scheduled to be ...

(USFL). After the USFL's demise, Smith played a final season for the

Los Angeles Raiders The Los Angeles Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Los Angeles from 1982 to 1994 before relocating back to Oakland, California, where the team played from its inaugural 1960 season to the 1981 season and then agai ...

in 1985.

Early years

Smith grew up in Robbins, Illinois, and attended Dwight D. Eisenhower High School in Blue Island, Illinois, where he earned All-Conference and All-State honors. In his senior year, he led the Eisenhower Cardinals to the South Suburban Conference title.

University of Michigan

Smith was a flanker and wingback for the

from 1974 to 1976. In three years at Michigan, he caught 73 passes for 1,687 yards (23.1 yards per reception) and 14 touchdowns. He also returned 51 punts for 525 yards, an average of 10.3 yards per return. He also ran with the ball 56 times for 394 yards, an average of 7.0 yards per carry. On November 8, 1975, in a victory over

Purdue Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...

, Smith had a career-high 184 receiving yards on five catches, including an 83-yard touchdown that set a record as the longest pass completion in Michigan history. He was selected as a consensus first-team wide receiver on the

1976 College Football All-America Team The 1976 College Football All-America team is composed of college football players who were selected as All-Americans by various organizations and writers that chose College Football All-America Teams in 1976. The National Collegiate Athletic Assoc ...

Professional football

Smith was selected by the

in the third round (75th overall pick) of the

1977 NFL Draft The 1977 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held May 3–4, 1977, at the Roosevelt Hotel ...

. He played for the Steelers from 1977 to 1982, backing up Hall of Famers

Lynn Swann Lynn Curtis Swann (born March 7, 1952) is an American former football player, broadcaster, politician, and athletic director, best known for his association with the University of Southern California and the Pittsburgh Steelers. He served on the ...

and John Stallworth and earning two Super Bowl rings in the process. Smith's best season with the Steelers was 1980 when he caught 37 passes for 711 yards and nine touchdowns. He had another strong year in 1981 with 29 passes for 571 yards and seven touchdowns. In 1982, Smith led the NFL with an average of 22.8 yards per reception. In six years with the Steelers, Smith caught 113 passes for 2,103 yards and 25 touchdowns. In April 1983, Smith signed a three-year contract to play for the Birmingham Stallions in the newly formed USFL. In order to persuade him to jump to the USFL, Smith was offered a sum greater than any NFL receiver was then making. He led the Stallions in receiving each year from 1983 to 1985. In 1983, he caught 51 passes for 756 yards and three touchdowns. In 1984, he caught 89 passes and led the USFL with 1,481 receiving yards and eight touchdowns. In the USFL's final season, 1985, Smith had his best year as a professional, finishing third in the USFL with 87 catches for 1,322 yards. He also led the USFL's receivers with 20 touchdown receptions. He made both the 1985 USFL all-league team and ''The Sporting Newss 1985 USFL All-Star Team.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Jim 1955 births Living people American football wide receivers Birmingham Stallions players Los Angeles Raiders players Michigan Wolverines football players Pittsburgh Steelers players People from Blue Island, Illinois People from Harvey, Illinois People from Robbins, Illinois Players of American football from Illinois African-American players of American football 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American sportspeople

Early years

University of Michigan

Professional football

See also

References

External links