Jerminic Smith might block anybody from taking his starting position
IOWA CITY, Iowa – As a receiver in high school, Jerminic Smith had it pretty good.
The Garland, Texas native caught lots of passes, including 76 as a senior, and he wasn’t asked to block.
“We didn’t block at all,” Smith said of the receivers on his high school team. “We just ran a spread (offense).”
Smith’s role as a receiver has changed dramatically since he became a member of the Iowa football team last season.
He still catches passes, including three for 51 yards and a touchdown in last Saturday’s 45-21 victory over Miami of Ohio in the season opener at Kinnick Stadium.
But Smith also blocks because he knows that if he doesn’t block as a receiver on the Iowa football team, he will be standing on the sideline, no matter how talented he might be.
Iowa relies heavily on the run, which relies heavily on the receivers blocking downfield.
The Hawkeyes, who play host to rival Iowa State on Saturday, rushed for 212 yards against Miami of Ohio on just 29 carries. That averages out to an impressive 7.3 yards per carry and is testimony to how well Smith and his cohorts blocked downfield.
Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz singled that out as perhaps what pleased him the most about the victory over Miami of Ohio.
“It’s been a big adjustment for me,” Smith said of blocking. “But it’s something I have to do coming to a Big Ten school in Iowa and being able to block for running backs and spring them open because that is where all the big plays happen is receivers blocking downfield.”
Smith appreciates Ferentz’s praise, but Smith also has no plans to rest on his laurels, not with Iowa State coming to town on Saturday, or any opponent for that matter.
In addition to blocking, Smith also has bought into Iowa’s one-game-at-a-time mentality and to the importance of living in the moment.
“It makes me feel good,” said Smith, who was one of four true freshmen to play for Iowa last season. “But at the same time, that week is behind us. We’ve just got to get ready for this week.”
Smith’s battle for playing time with fellow sophomore Jay Scheel is reason to be ready for each practice.
Scheel recently moved ahead of Smith on the depth chart, but Scheel didn’t play in the season opener because of the lingering effects of a hamstring injury.
Smith seized the moment by not only executing his blocks in the season opener, but he also was resilient.
“It’s really more about Jay Scheel had emerged, he really just kept improving, so it wasn’t a knock on Jerminic,” Ferentz said after Saturday’s victory over Miami of Ohio when asked if there was a reason Smith had lost his spot to Scheel. “I think one of the better things I saw today was one ball he couldn’t come up with, but then he came back and made a really tough catch and I complemented him on that after the game here.
“To me, that’s a really positive sign. He’s done a lots of good things in practice and maybe with a little bit of luck, we can develop some luck there."
Smith is now listed as a starter again and is eager to face the Cyclones under the lights on Saturday with kickoff scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at Kinnick Stadium.
He grew up far away from Iowa, but knows from observing his Hawkeye teammates from Iowa that the Iowa State rivalry is special.
“They don’t say much,” Smith said. “You can just tell by the way they practice. They really just bring it, each and every play.”