Marcus E. Smith (born February 7, 1984) 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 ...

defensive tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that will typically line up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the offensive guards, however he may also line up opposite one of the tackles. Defensive tackles are typically the la ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

for the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...

and

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. ...

. He also was a member of the

Montreal Alouettes The Montreal Alouettes (Canadian French, French: Les Alouettes de Montréal) are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has folded and been revived twice. The Alouettes compete in the Canadian F ...

in the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

and the Las Vegas Locomotives in the United Football League. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

Early years

Smith attended Mission Bay High School. As a junior, he received All-league honors. As a senior

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

, he tallied 90 tackles, 10 sacks, 2 interceptions, 5 forced fumbles and returned a fumble 96 yards for a touchdown (CIF-San Diego record). He received All-league, All-San Diego area, San Diego Union Tribune All-county, Prep Football Report All-West and SuperPrep All-Farwest honors. He made the San Diego Union Tribune All-academic team for 3 years. In

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

, he received All-league honors as a junior. He averaged 17 points and 16 rebounds per game as a senior. He also practiced

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

College career

Smith accepted a football scholarship from the

University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it was the first university in the Arizona Territory. T ...

. As a true freshman, he appeared in 9 games, making 16 tackles (3.5 for loss), 1.5 sacks and one pass defensed. As a sophomore, he started 6 out of 12 games at

, collecting 40 tackles (6 for loss), 4 sacks and one fumble recovery. As a junior, he started 11 games, registering 41 tackles (3.5 for loss), 1.5 sacks, 8 passes defensed and one fumble recovery. As a senior, he suffered a leg injury in the second game and received a medical hardship, while recording 7 tackles and one fumble recovery. As a fifth year senior in 2006, he posted 16 tackles (3 for loss), 3 sacks, 9 passes defensed and 3 fumble recoveries. He finished his college career with 120 tackles (16 for loss) and 10 sacks.

Professional career

Dallas Cowboys

Smith was signed as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

by the

after the 2007 NFL Draft on May 2. He was waived on September 1 and signed to the

practice squad In sports, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. Frequently used in gridiron football, they serve as extra players during the team's practices, ...

the next day. He was released on August 30, 2008.

Buffalo Bills

On October 22, 2008, he was signed to the

and moved to

. On September 1, 2009, he was released and placed on the

injured reserve list The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in th ...

on September 3. He was released on February 16, 2010.

Montreal Alouettes (CFL)

On April 8, 2010, he was signed by the

of the

, to play as a

. On June 24, he was released and signed to the practice roster. He made his CFL debut in the second game against the

Edmonton Eskimos The Edmonton Elks are a professional Canadian football team based in Edmonton, Alberta. The club competes in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member of the league's West Division and plays their home games at the Brick Field at Commo ...

. On July 21, he was signed back to the practice roster.

Sacramento Mountain Lions (UFL)

On May 17, 2011, he signed with the

Sacramento Mountain Lions The Sacramento Mountain Lions was a professional 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 rect ...

of the United Football League. He was released before the start of the season.

Las Vegas Locomotives (UFL)

In 2011, he signed with the Las Vegas Locomotives of the United Football League. In 2012, he was re-signed by the team.

References

External links

Arizona Wildcats football bio

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Marcus 1984 births Living people Players of American football from San Diego Players of Canadian football from San Diego American football defensive ends American football defensive tackles Arizona Wildcats football players Dallas Cowboys players Buffalo Bills players Montreal Alouettes players Las Vegas Locomotives players