Both Tre Smith and Jesse Lumsden should not only be in the NFL, they should both be starting tailbacks. I think both these guys are better than Brian Leonard. They are both phenomenal athletes who could both run for "at least" mid 4s YPC in the NFL behind a decent o-line. Tre is more of an elusive scat back in the mold of Brian Westbrook or Willie Parker and Lumsden is a north south power runner with a burst and cutback ability in the mold of Brandon Jacobs. Lumsden has a bit better burst and is slightly faster than Jacobs in fact, but has a bit less lateral agility.
Jacob Hester and Danny Woodhead will be better IMO as HBs than Leonard as well.
Here is a good article on Tre Smith in his new "foreign" land.
PRO FOOTBALL I CANADIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE
Familiar game; foreign affair
By Perry D. Pentz
Published Thursday, July 3, 2008 at 4:30 a.m.
Last updated Thursday, July 3, 2008 at 6:39 a.m.
Last week, a new chapter began in the life of former Venice High football standout Tre Smith.
Smith, the all-time leading rusher at Venice and a graduate of Auburn University, played his first regular season professional football game for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League.
The 24-year-old, who signed as a free agent on May 16, is a backup running back. He made his debut in a 33-10 loss to the Montreal Alouettes on June 26. Today they play the Toronto Argonauts at the Rogers Centre in Toronto.
Smith admitted to being nervous before the first game, but that's not unusual.
"I'm always a little bit nervous but after the first hit it's gone, and I settled down," said Smith, from Hamilton, Ontario.
Against the Alouettes, the 5-foot-11, 195-pounder carried the ball twice but made an impact.
His first carry resulted in a two-yard loss.
On his second carry, however, Smith took the handoff, pushed a Montreal defensive end away and bolted up the middle for a 75-yard touchdown run, the Tiger-Cats' only TD of the game.
His 73 yards rushing total is fifth best in the league going into today's game.
"I thought, man, I am going to run as fast as I can so I don't get caught," Smith said. "Whenever I broke free I was looking up at the big screen and used it as my rearview mirror to see if anyone was coming close to me."
Smith was also active on special teams with five kickoff returns for 106 yards, including a long of 31 yards. He also returned three punts for 13 yards and had one catch for 20 yards.
His 212 combined yards was the best in the CFL after the first week.
"I did OK," Smith said. "I didn't get a whole lot of playing time."
Smith says he enjoys returning punts in the CFL since he gets a five-yard cushion and calling for a fair catch, unlike the NFL, is not allowed.
"I've never been one to call fair catches anyways so this is great," he said. "I can catch it and make my moves."
According to Smith, the pay scale in the CFL is about 1/10th of what it is in the NFL.
Smith, who signed a two-year contract, is getting $45,000 a year which works out to $2,500 a game.
"I only got one check and have not fully grasped getting paid," said Smith. "I've got to save as much money as I can for the offseason."
Smith received his master's degree in information systems management at Auburn in December. He was supposed to play in the All-American Football League in March but the league shut down.
"Mentally I was prepared to play football," said Smith.
So he participated in tryouts for Montreal, Calgary and Hamilton.
"The owner (Bob Young) knew me from Auburn and brought me up here and gave me a chance," said Smith. "I'm so grateful he gave me a chance, and I'm trying to make the most of it."
Smith does not know what he will do after his contract is up.
"I will stay as long as they want me and as long as football is still fun I'll keep playing," said Smith. "When it's not then I will think of retiring."
Smith spent five years at Auburn and in 54 games, he rushed for 1,023 yards on 196 carries and 13 TDs. He had 27 catches for 267 yards and returned 77 punts for 621 yards (fourth most in school history) and 19 kickoffs for 301 yards.
In high school, Smith helped lead Venice High to the 2000 Class 5A state title with a 15-0 record as junior. As a senior, Smith was named Class 6A Player of the Year after rushing for 1,776 yards and 20 TDs.
In his career, Smith rushed for 4,691 yards on 539 carries and 61 touchdowns, including three straight 1,000-yard seasons.
Last modified: July 3, 2008 6:39am
Go Tre! Show the NFL what racist fools they are to snub every talented white RB that comes along. Tre is an elite talent who deserves more than $45,000 a year to play football!
