Smith will always be an Owl
By Marcus Nelson
It's a strange sight to see a football player on the practice field tossing a football around with his right arm and his left arm in a sling.
It will be even more odd to see someone other than FAU's No. 11 take the field Saturday when the Owls face UAB.
On Saturday, it won't be senior Rusty Smith under center for the first time since 2006, but junior Jeff Van Camp. A sprained left shoulder will keep Smith relegated to doing what he was doing Tuesday - helping and encouraging his teammates. And Smith said he is looking forward to helping the program the rest of the season in that capacity.
"Any role they ask me to," Smith said, when asked what he would be doing with the team going forward. "If they put me on a headset and ask for input I'll do that. If I'm just there for moral support, I'll do that. ...I'm still an FAU Owl and I will always be an Owl. This is my team and i will help them any possible way I can."
It's admirable that Smith will be helping the team. Considering all he's done for the program, it's hardly necessary.
Smith has done more than earn the tuition, books, room and board his scholarship provided since he arrived in 2005.
Good luck, Rusty. You will be missed.
Owl LinksFAUOwlAccess.com covered the
Rusty Smith story and sent out our first alert on Twitter, seconds after Smith announced to reporters his career at FAU was over. Follow us on Twitter
@FAUOwlAccess to get breaking FAU news when it happens. Also check out our videos of Smith talking with the media
about his options and his refelctions of his
career at FAU. Also we just posted a video looking at how
Van Camp is preparing for his first start.
Here's more coverage of Smith's announcment from the Palm Beach Post and the Sun-Sentinel
The Birmingham News reports on the Blazers preparing for Van Camp