Kevin Smith, 2008 NFL Draft Prospect
 | Running Back 6' 1" 217 lbs. Speed: 4.43 Junior University of Central Florida NFL Comparison: Eric Dickerson  |
Smith was the 2007 NCAA rushing champion. He rushed for 284 yards and 4 Touchdowns as Central Florida beat Tulsa 44-25 to win the 2007 Conference USA title. He not only led the nation with 2,567 yards and 29 TDs, but he passed Marcus Allen in the record books and was only 61 yards behind Barry Sanders in rushing yards (2,628) for a single season. He had an impressive 5.70 yards per carry average. That is impressive company folks. Smith looks fast, cuts on a dime and has abundant power. Not considered a burner and he has an upright running style, but he has great vision and when he sees a hole he plants his foot and heads upfield with an incredible burst. He has also shown to be incredibly durable, a starter since he was a true freshman, he has never sustained a serious injury.
Smith has “football” speed and you rarely see him caught from behind. His post season workouts and/or NFL Scouting Combine workouts are going to be instrumental in his final draft grade because being an underclassmen, he won’t be able to participate in any of the college All-Star games like the Hula Bowl, East West Shrine game and the grand daddy of them all, the Senior Bowl. The other issue that Smith has to contend with is the perception that his numbers are inflated due to the fact that he played in a weak conference (Conference USA). He will also have a lot of competition at the running back position as it is considered the strongest position in the 2008 NFL Draft. In spite of those challenges I still see Smith as a quality young running back with tons of potential. I currently give him a late first, early second round draft grade.
As a sophomore in 2006, he started all nine games at running back and had three of the Top 20 single-game rushing performances in Central Florida history. He was named a second-team All-Conference USA performer by the league's head coaches and third-team member by the league's media. Smith averaged 103.8 rushing yards per game and was third in C-USA with total of 934 yards rushing.
In 2005 Smith was the nation's second-leading true freshman rusher with 1,178 yards. He set UCF school record for most rushing yards by a true freshman and ended the season third in school history in single-season rushing yards. A workhouse since day one, he finished the season with 249 attempts, the second-highest amount in single-season history at UCF.
2007 Season Accolades:
· The Nation's #1 Scorer (13.9 ppg, 29 Touchdowns)
· The Nation's #1 Rusher (183.36 ypg, 2,567 yards)
· The State of Florida's All-time Leading Rusher
· UCF's All-Time Leading Rusher
· 2007 Heisman Trophy Contender
· 2007 Walter Camp Award Players to Watch
· 2007 First-Team All-America Candidate
· 2007 Conference USA Offensive Player of the Year
· Four-Time C-USA Player of the Week in 2007
· AT&T All-America National Player of the Week (Week #10 vs. UAB)
· Was a Doak Walker Award semifinalist
· NFL Draft Dog "Post-Season" All-American
Update: Smith had an excellent workout at the NFL Scouting Combine running a 4.43 forty. He also displayed excellent agility and quickness in his drills. Smith is going to be a solid early second round draft pick and an absolute steal if he slips into the 3rd round.