Mike Smith’s role vital one for UM Bears

ORONO – He is the Smith who doesn’t get the headlines. But if the University of Maine football team is to repeat as Yankee Conference champion in 1990, senior inside linebacker and co-captain Mike Smith will be every bit as important to the Black Bears’ chances as All-American tailback Carl Smith.

“You’ve got to have a leader playing linebacker,” said UM head coach Kirk Ferentz, who played the position himself at UConn. “He’s like a catcher in baseball. We’re counting on Mike to give us that leadership.”

Smith established his ability to play linebacker as a starter the past two years. He led the Bears in tackles last season with 85. He also had three interceptions and two fumble recoveries.

At most schools, Smith would have entered his final season secure in his knowledge of the defense and his role within it. Instead, he is faced with the task of learning a whole new scheme, a pro-style 3-4, under his fourth coaching staff.

“It’s a big adjustment,” said Smith, following Monday’s intrasquad scrimmage. “Last year, I was playing 5 or 6 yards off the ball. If I took a wrong step, I could recover. Now, I’m 3 yards off the ball. I can’t afford to take a wrong step.”

In addition to learning his own position, Smith is also memorizing the responsibilities of the defensive linemen and backs. It goes with the territory in his job as the “mike” linebacker, who must read the offensive formation and make audible adjustments before the ball is snapped.

What is making Smith’s job at least a little easier is his background in computer programming as a major in Manage-ment/Integrated Systems. If that doesn’t square with the head-crashing image of an inside linebacker, it’s because Smith doesn’t see his position that way.

“It’s really a thinking position,” said the 22-year-old.

After leading the defense through Monday’s scrimmage, Smith said he is confident the unit is grasping the new odd-front concept, which features a wide array of stunts and blitzes.

“We looked better today. We got our butts kicked Saturday. We’re getting there,” he said.

Where Smith would ultimately like to get is the NFL. A native of Foxboro, Mass., where he was a standout player at Foxboro High, he grew up going to New England Patriots games.

“Oh yeah, a bunch of us used to go to the games and wait outside the gates to get the players’ autographs,” said Smith, adding he’d naturally love to play in front of his hometown friends for the Patriots.

Ferentz, who saw his share of pro players in his nine seasons as an assistant at Iowa in the Big Ten, thinks the 6-foot-1, 245-pound Smith has a chance to realize his goal.

“He’s got the numbers the pros look for,” Ferentz said. “He’s big, strong, and fast. All he’s got to do now is play. If the scouts like what they see him do on film, they’ll be all over him. It just comes down to him having a great senior season.”

Smith is concentrating on having just such a season. And if the scouts are looking for something more, he’s also competing for the starting punter’s job. He boomed a pair of 40-yarders into a stiff wind following the scrimmage.

“I punted in high school and I was pretty good. I have no technique. I just power the ball. But I’ve been working on it,” said Mike Smith, the Smith who makes tackles, not headlines.

BEAR TRACKS…. All-American tailback Carl Smith re-injured his right ankle during the scrimmage after a 20-yard gain. Smith, who first suffered a slight sprain last Thursday, sat out the remainder of the afternoon and is on a day-to-day basis…. First-string quarterback Jeff DelRosso completed 4 of 11 throws, but was victimized by several drops. “We had too many drops of catchable balls,” Ferentz said. “That’s something we’re going to have to eliminate.” Ferentz and his staff will study film of the scrimmage before making decisions on who will start later this week.