Kansas State University Athletics
2021 Football
Smith, TJ
Jersey Number 7
TJ Smith
- Position:
- Defensive Back
- Height:
- 5-9
- Weight:
- 190
- Class:
- Redshirt Freshman
- Hometown:
- Atlanta, Ga.
- High School:
- McEachern
Bio
CAREER HONORS
• 2021 Second Team Academic All-Big 12
CAREER: Played in 28 games with seven starts over parts of three seasons before transferring to Georgia Southern.
2022: Saw action in 11 games, totaling 19 tackles... Had a season-high four stops against Tulane and three apiece at Oklahoma, Baylor and West Virginia... Broke up a pass against Missouri.
2021: A seven-game starter who played in all 13 games, ranking eighth on the team with 39 tackles... Bookended the regular season with an interception against Stanford – which he returned 39 yards – with one at Texas... Also broke up passes against Southern Illinois and Kansas, while he recovered a fumble against Baylor... Set a career high with seven tackles at Oklahoma State and had five apiece against Southern Illinois and Iowa State... A Second Team Academic All-Big 12 honoree.
2020: Played in each of the first four games prior to a season-ending injury... Tallied seven tackles on the year, including a season-high four stops against Texas Tech... Also had a pair of tackles in K-State’s win at No. 3 Oklahoma.
HIGH SCHOOL: Played at McEachern under head coach Franklin Stephens... Rated the 62nd-best cornerback in the Class of 2020 by Rivals... Registered 41 tackles and 10 passes defended as a senior... Helped lead the Indians to a 12-1 record and a trip to the quarterfinals of the state championship in 2019... Team went 14-1 and earned a state championship his sophomore season of 2017 .
PERSONAL: TJ Smith was born September 23, 2001, in Atlanta, Georgia... Son of Chris and Shandra Smith... Brother, Christopher Smith II, is a defensive back at Georgia... Majoring in business administration.
• 2021 Second Team Academic All-Big 12
CAREER: Played in 28 games with seven starts over parts of three seasons before transferring to Georgia Southern.
2022: Saw action in 11 games, totaling 19 tackles... Had a season-high four stops against Tulane and three apiece at Oklahoma, Baylor and West Virginia... Broke up a pass against Missouri.
2021: A seven-game starter who played in all 13 games, ranking eighth on the team with 39 tackles... Bookended the regular season with an interception against Stanford – which he returned 39 yards – with one at Texas... Also broke up passes against Southern Illinois and Kansas, while he recovered a fumble against Baylor... Set a career high with seven tackles at Oklahoma State and had five apiece against Southern Illinois and Iowa State... A Second Team Academic All-Big 12 honoree.
2020: Played in each of the first four games prior to a season-ending injury... Tallied seven tackles on the year, including a season-high four stops against Texas Tech... Also had a pair of tackles in K-State’s win at No. 3 Oklahoma.
HIGH SCHOOL: Played at McEachern under head coach Franklin Stephens... Rated the 62nd-best cornerback in the Class of 2020 by Rivals... Registered 41 tackles and 10 passes defended as a senior... Helped lead the Indians to a 12-1 record and a trip to the quarterfinals of the state championship in 2019... Team went 14-1 and earned a state championship his sophomore season of 2017 .
PERSONAL: TJ Smith was born September 23, 2001, in Atlanta, Georgia... Son of Chris and Shandra Smith... Brother, Christopher Smith II, is a defensive back at Georgia... Majoring in business administration.
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