Ito Smith

Romarius "Ito" Smith (born September 11, 1995) is an American football running back who is a free agent. Smith was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in the fourth round of the 2018 NFL Draft, and played three seasons for the Falcons in the NFL. He played college football at Southern Miss.

Ito Smith
refer to caption
Smith in 2017
Personal information
Born: (1995-09-11) September 11, 1995
Mobile, Alabama, U.S.
Height:5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Weight:195 lb (88 kg)
Career information
High school:McGill–Toolen Catholic
(Mobile, Alabama)
College:Southern Miss (2014–2017)
Position:Running back
NFL Draft:2018 / Round: 4 / Pick: 126
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career highlights and awards
  • First-team All-CUSA (2017)
Career NFL statistics as of 2021
Rushing yards:689
Rushing average:3.9
Rushing touchdowns:6
Receptions:55
Receiving yards:314
Receiving touchdowns:0
Return yards:59
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR

Early years

Smith attended and played high school football at McGill–Toolen Catholic High School.[1] As a result of his high school career playing for the Yellow Jackets, he was named as a three-star prospect by 247Sports and a two-star prospect according to Rivals.com and Scout.com.[2] He committed to Southern Miss to play football over offers from Duke, Georgia Tech, Louisiana Tech, and Western Kentucky, among others.[3]

College career

As a sophomore in 2015, he rushed for 1,128 yards and 10 touchdowns and caught 49 passes for 515 yards.[4] His average of 134 yards of total offense per game in 2015 ranked 18th among Division I FBS players.[5]

In July 2016, Smith was named to the watch list for the Maxwell Award.[6][7] In September 2016, he set a school record with an 86-yard touchdown run against Savannah State.[8]

During his college career, he rushed for 4,538 yards and 42 rushing touchdowns.[9]

Collegiate statistics
Ito Smith Rushing Receiving
Year School Conf Class Pos G Att Yds Avg TD Rec Yds Avg TD
2014 Southern Miss CUSA FR RB 11 136 536 3.9 2 8 76 9.5 0
2015 Southern Miss CUSA SO RB 14 171 1,128 6.6 10 49 515 10.5 3
2016 Southern Miss CUSA JR RB 13 265 1,459 5.5 17 43 459 10.7 2
2017 Southern Miss CUSA SR RB 13 248 1,415 5.7 13 40 396 9.9 2
Career Southern Miss 51 820 4,538 5.5 42 140 1,446 10.3 7

Professional career
Pre-draft measurables
HeightWeight40-yard dash10-yard split20-yard split20-yard shuttleThree-cone drillVertical jumpBroad jumpBench press
5 ft 8+5⁄8 in
(1.74 m)		 200 lb
(91 kg)		 4.45 s1.57 s2.58 s4.56 s7.22 s36+1⁄2 in
(0.93 m)		9 ft 11 in
(3.02 m)		22 reps
All values from NFL Draft[10][11]

2018 season: Rookie year
Smith in 2018

Smith was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in the fourth round (126th overall) of the 2018 NFL Draft.[12] He was named the third running back on the depth chart behind Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman to start the season. Smith made his NFL debut in the Falcons' Week 2 victory over the Carolina Panthers. He had nine carries for 46 rushing yards and an eight-yard reception in the 31–24 victory.[13] In Week 4, against the Cincinnati Bengals, Smith scored his first NFL touchdown, a 7-yard rush in the first quarter.[14] In Week 5, a 41–17 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, he scored his second rushing touchdown of the season.[15] In Week 6, against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, he recorded his third rushing touchdown, and become the first rookie in franchise history to score rushing touchdowns in three consecutive games.[16] In Week 8 against the Washington Redskins, he scored his fourth rushing touchdown of the season as part of a 60-yard performance in the victory.[17] On December 17, 2018, Smith was placed on injured reserve with a knee injury.[18] He finished the season with 315 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns along with 27 receptions for 152 receiving yards.[19]

2019 season

Smith entered the 2019 season as the No. 2 running back behind Devonta Freeman after Tevin Coleman left in free agency.[20] He played in seven games before suffering a concussion in Week 7. He was placed on injured reserve on November 9, 2019.[21] Smith finished the 2019 season with 22 carries for 106 rushing yards and one rushing touchdown to go along with 11 receptions for 87 receiving yards.[22]

2020 season

Smith entered the 2020 season as the No. 3 running back behind newly acquired running back Todd Gurley and Brian Hill. Smith became the starting running back for the final few weeks of the season after Gurley became less effective and interim head coach Raheem Morris wanting to give Smith a good look.[23] He finished the 2020 season with 63 carries for 268 rushing yards and one rushing touchdown to go along with 17 receptions for 75 receiving yards in 14 games.[24]

Smith was waived on April 15, 2021, after three seasons with the team.[25]

Arizona Cardinals

On August 7, 2021, Smith signed with the Arizona Cardinals.[26] He was waived on August 16, 2021.[27]

Minnesota Vikings

On August 23, 2021, Smith signed with the Minnesota Vikings,[28] but was waived five days later.[29]

Dallas Cowboys

On December 8, 2021, Smith was signed to the Dallas Cowboys practice squad. The signing reunited him with defensive coordinator Dan Quinn, who was his head coach with the Falcons.[30] In Week 18 with the starters resting for the playoffs, Dallas elevated him for the season finale against the Philadelphia Eagles, where he scored his first and only touchdown of the year on a four-yard rush.[31][32] He signed a reserve/future contract with the Cowboys on January 18, 2022. He was released on March 11, 2022.[33]

Personal life

Smith has earned the nickname "The Judge" after Lance Ito.[34]

References
  1. "Alabama High School Football History". AHSFHS. Archived from the original on December 1, 2018. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
  2. "Ito Smith College Bio". Southern Miss. Archived from the original on December 1, 2018. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
  3. "Ito Smith, 2014 All Purpose Back". Rivals.com. Archived from the original on August 10, 2021. Retrieved August 31, 2022.
  4. "Ito Smith Statistics". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on September 23, 2016. Retrieved September 21, 2016.
  5. Munz, Jason (July 19, 2016). "Most important Golden Eagles: No. 2 Ito Smith". The Clarion-Ledger. Archived from the original on December 21, 2020. Retrieved January 1, 2023.
  6. "Nick Mullens, Ito Smith Named to Maxwell Award Watch List". Southern Miss Golden Eagles Athletics. July 5, 2016. Archived from the original on August 10, 2016. Retrieved September 21, 2016.
  7. Marshall, Jonathan (July 6, 2016). "Mullens, Smith named to Maxwell watch list". WDAM-TV. Archived from the original on December 21, 2020. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  8. Hinton, Alan (September 10, 2016). "Ito Smith eclipses Reggie Collier in Southern Miss record book". Sun Herald. Archived from the original on April 20, 2018. Retrieved January 1, 2023.
  9. Inabinett, Mark (January 27, 2018). "McGill-Toolen's Ito Smith reaches goal by returning to play in Senior Bowl". AL.com. Archived from the original on April 20, 2018. Retrieved October 4, 2018.
  10. "NFL Draft Prospect Profile – Ito Smith". nfl.com. March 1, 2018. Archived from the original on April 5, 2018. Retrieved March 1, 2018.
  11. "Southern Mississippi RB Ito Smith : 2018 NFL Draft Scout Player Profile". NFLDraftScout.com. Archived from the original on August 28, 2018. Retrieved May 12, 2018.
  12. "Falcons Select Ito Smith in Fourth Round". Atlanta Falcons. April 28, 2018. Archived from the original on May 1, 2018. Retrieved May 13, 2018.
  13. "Falcons' Ito Smith: Solid outing in regular-season debut". CBS Sports. September 17, 2018. Archived from the original on October 4, 2018. Retrieved October 4, 2018.
  14. Inabinett, Mark (September 30, 2018). "Watch Ito Smith score his first NFL touchdown for the Atlanta Falcons". AL.com. Archived from the original on October 11, 2018. Retrieved October 10, 2018.
  15. "Cincinnati Bengals at Atlanta Falcons – September 30th, 2018". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on June 19, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
  16. Urben, Matt (October 14, 2018). "Falcons Highlights: Rookie RB Ito Smith scores TD in third straight game". USA Today Sports. Archived from the original on April 4, 2019. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
  17. McClure, Vaughn (November 5, 2018). "Falcons finally get back in the running with Tevin Coleman, Ito Smith". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on December 6, 2018. Retrieved December 5, 2018.
  18. McFadden, Will (December 17, 2018). "Falcons announce Ito Smith heading to IR". Atlanta Falcons. Archived from the original on November 8, 2020.
  19. "Ito Smith 2018 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on January 2, 2023. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
  20. Conway, Kelsey (August 31, 2019). "Falcons 2019 roster: Position-by-position breakdown". www.atlantafalcons.com. Archived from the original on January 2, 2023. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
  21. McFadden, Will (November 9, 2019). "Falcons place Ito Smith on IR, sign Sean Harlow to active roster". Atlanta Falcons. Archived from the original on August 11, 2020. Retrieved January 1, 2023.
  22. "Ito Smith 2019 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on January 2, 2023. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  23. Urben, Matt (December 21, 2020). "Raheem Morris names Ito Smith the starting RB over Todd Gurley". Falcons Wire. USA Today. Archived from the original on October 6, 2022. Retrieved January 1, 2023.
  24. "Ito Smith 2020 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on January 2, 2023. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
  25. Deighton, John (April 15, 2021). "Falcons Release Ito Smith". AtlantaFalcons.com. Archived from the original on April 15, 2021. Retrieved April 15, 2021.
  26. Urban, Darren (August 7, 2021). "Cardinals Sign RB Ito Smith To Add To Backfield". AZCardinals.com. Archived from the original on September 30, 2022. Retrieved January 1, 2023.
  27. Urban, Darren (August 16, 2021). "Cardinals Bring Back Four From Covid List, Including James Conner". AZCardinals.com. Archived from the original on September 30, 2022. Retrieved January 1, 2023.
  28. "Vikings Announce Signings of Everson Griffen & Ito Smith, Make More Roster Moves". Vikings.com. August 23, 2021. Archived from the original on May 25, 2022. Retrieved January 1, 2023.
  29. Peters, Craig (August 28, 2021). "Vikings Waive 3 Players Ahead of Final Roster Cuts". Vikings.com. Archived from the original on August 29, 2021. Retrieved August 29, 2021.
  30. Brock, Todd (December 8, 2021). "Cowboys sign former Falcons RB Ito Smith to practice squad". Cowboys Wire. USA Today. Archived from the original on December 4, 2022. Retrieved January 1, 2023.
  31. "Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles – January 8th, 2022". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Archived from the original on January 2, 2023. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
  32. "Ito Smith: Shifts back to practice squad". CBSSports.com. January 10, 2022. Archived from the original on April 21, 2022. Retrieved January 1, 2023.
  33. Alper, Josh (March 11, 2022). "Cowboys cut Reggie Robinson, Robert Foster, Ito Smith". Pro Football Talk. NBC Sports. Archived from the original on April 14, 2022. Retrieved January 1, 2023.
  34. Easterling, Luke (July 5, 2018). "Why Falcons rookie Ito Smith was nicknamed after famous judge". USA Today Sports. Archived from the original on October 29, 2018. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
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