Steve Smith (running back)

Steve Smith

No. 35
Position:	Fullback
Personal information
Born:	(1964-08-30)August 30, 1964 Washington, D.C., U.S.
Died:	November 20, 2021(2021-11-20) (aged 57) Richardson, Texas, U.S.
Height:	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight:	242 lb (110 kg)
Career information
High school:	DeMatha Catholic (Hyattsville, Maryland)
College:	Penn State
NFL draft:	1987 / round: 3 / pick: 81
Career history
Los Angeles Raiders (1987–1993) Seattle Seahawks (1994–1995)
Career highlights and awards
National champion (1986)
Career NFL statistics
Rushing yards: 1,627 Rushing average: 3.8 Rushing touchdowns: 9 Stats at Pro Football Reference

Steven Anthony Smith (August 30, 1964 – November 20, 2021) was an American professional football player who was a fullback for nine seasons in the National Football League (NFL) with the Los Angeles Raiders and Seattle Seahawks. He was a team captain on the Penn State Nittany Lions's national championship team in 1986.

Smith was a third-round draft choice of the Raiders in the 1987 NFL draft. Converted to fullback, Smith blocked for Raiders star running backs Bo Jackson and Marcus Allen. He then spent two seasons with Seattle until a back injury ended his career. Although primarily a blocker, he finished his career with 1627 rushing yards and 13 receiving touchdowns.

In 1995, Smith won the inaugural Madden Bowl, a tournament during Super Bowl weekend in which current and former NFL players compete at the Madden NFL video game.

NFL career statistics

Legend
Bold	Career high

Regular season

Year	Team	Games		Rushing					Receiving
		GP	GS	Att	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD	Rec	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD
1987	RAI	7	3	5	18	3.6	15	0	3	46	15.3	32	0
1988	RAI	16	6	38	162	4.3	21	3	26	299	11.5	45	6
1989	RAI	16	16	117	471	4.0	21	1	19	140	7.4	14	0
1990	RAI	16	15	81	327	4.0	17	2	4	30	7.5	17	3
1991	RAI	16	16	62	265	4.3	19	1	15	130	8.7	37	1
1992	RAI	16	15	44	129	2.9	15	0	28	217	7.8	19	1
1993	RAI	16	13	47	156	3.3	13	0	18	187	10.4	22	0
1994	SEA	16	0	26	80	3.1	12	2	11	142	12.9	25	1
1995	SEA	9	7	9	19	2.1	4	0	7	59	8.4	17	1
		128	91	429	1,627	3.8	21	9	131	1,250	9.5	45	13

Playoffs

Year	Team	Games		Rushing					Receiving
		GP	GS	Att	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD	Rec	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD
1990	RAI	2	2	9	37	4.1	7	0	1	5	5.0	5	0
1991	RAI	1	1	3	6	2.0	3	0	1	9	9.0	9	0
1993	RAI	2	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0	0.0	0	0
		5	3	12	43	3.6	7	0	2	14	7.0	9	0

After football

Smith married former Raiderette, Chie Smith from Los Angeles, CA in December 1989. The couple had two children, Dante and Jazmin and lived in Richardson, Texas. Smith had been afflicted with Lou Gehrig's disease from July 2002 until his death. He could not speak because of a ventilator and received his food through a feeding tube. He communicated via a state of the art computer system paid for by The Steve Gleason Foundation.

Smith was the focus of an August 17, 2010, episode of HBO's Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel exploring how toxic proteins that form after brain trauma may cause Lou Gehrig's disease. He died on November 20, 2021, after suffering from ALS for almost 20 years.

External links

• "Commitment to Acceptance", Paul Turse, raiderdrive.com
• Former Raider With ALS Wants To Help Others Archived 2011-05-24 at the Wayback Machine, The Dallas Morning News, July 19, 2003
• Former Raider fullback Smith battles illness, Genaro C. Armas, The Associated Press, December 29, 2006
• "Show of strength: Doctors told Steve Smith he was dying of ALS. He is now convinced that is not true", Frank Bodani, York Daily Record, July 11, 2004.
• "Former PSU fullback Steve Smith still has strength to fight" Archived 2010-09-02 at the Wayback Machine, Frank Bodani, York Daily Record, July 15, 2010.
• “Former Oakland Raider, Steve Smith, and his fight against ALS”, ESPN Video.
• “Steve Smith, former Penn State and Raider Football Player, has ALS”, Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, HBO, August 17, 2010.