Editing Musa Smith

{{Short description|American football player (born 1982)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2019}}
{{Infobox NFL biography
| name        = Musa Smith
| image       = Musa Smith 2006-11-26.jpg
| caption     = Smith with the [[Baltimore Ravens]] in 2006
| number      = 32
| position    = [[Running back]]
| birth_date  = {{birth date and age|1982|5|31}}
| birth_place = [[New Bloomfield, Pennsylvania]], U.S.
| height_ft   = 6
| height_in   = 0
| weight_lbs  = 232
| high_school = [[West Perry High School|Elliottsburg (PA) West Perry]]
| college     = [[Georgia Bulldogs football|Georgia]]
| draftyear   = 2003
| draftround  = 3
| draftpick   = 77
| pastteams   = * [[Baltimore Ravens]] ({{NFL Year|2003}}–{{NFL Year|2007}})
* [[New York Jets]] ({{NFL Year|2008}})*
| highlights  = * First-team [[List of All-SEC football teams|All-SEC]] ([[2002 All-SEC football team|2002]])
| statlabel1  = [[Rushing yards]]
| statvalue1  = 496
| statlabel2  = [[Average|Rushing average]]
| statvalue2  = 3.8
| statlabel3  = [[Reception (American football)|Receptions]]
| statvalue3  = 54
| statlabel4  = [[Receiving yards]]
| statvalue4  = 363
| statlabel5  = [[Touchdown|Total touchdowns]]
| statvalue5  = 4
| pfr         = S/SmitMu00
}}
'''Musa Smith''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|m|uː|s|ə}}; born May 31, 1982) is an American former professional [[American football|football]] player who was a  [[running back]] for five seasons in the [[National Football League]] (NFL).  He played [[college football]] for the [[Georgia Bulldogs football|Georgia Bulldogs]] and was selected by the [[Baltimore Ravens]] in the third round of the [[2003 NFL draft]]. Smith was also a member of the [[New York Jets]].

==Early life==
Smith attended [[West Perry High School]] in [[Perry County, Pennsylvania]], where he was a ''[[USA Today]]'' honorable mention "All-USA" selection in [[High school football|football]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2013-03-21 |title=The Mag Archives: Georgia player's father linked to terrorism |url=https://www.espn.in/college-football/story/_/page/Mag15thegoodson/georgia-tailback-musa-smith-father-admits-terrorist-connection-espn-magazine-archives |access-date=2025-01-07 |website=ESPN |language=en}}</ref>

==College career==
At the [[Georgia Bulldogs football|University of Georgia]], Smith rushed for 2,202 yards and 19 touchdowns on 454 carries (4.9 yards per carry) during his three-year career at Georgia. This included a spectacular junior campaign in 2002, when he rushed for 1,324 yards and eight touchdowns on 261 carries (5.1 yards per carry), becoming the first Georgia running back to pass 1,000-yards in a season since [[Garrison Hearst]] in 1992.<ref name="going pro">{{cite news|last=Newberry|first=Paul|title=Georgia RB Musa Smith Going Pro|url=http://www.beaumontenterprise.com/default/article/Georgia-RB-Musa-Smith-Going-Pro-751451.php|accessdate=March 5, 2011|newspaper=Beaumont Enterprise|date=January 8, 2003|agency=Associated Press}}</ref>

Smith played a starring role in Georgia's [[2003 Sugar Bowl]] victory over [[Florida State Seminoles football|Florida State]] on January 1, 2003, carrying the ball 23 times for 145 yards in Georgia's 26–13 win.{{Citation needed|date=August 2023}}

==Professional career==
{{NFL predraft
|    height ft = 6
|    height in = 0 3/4
|       weight = 232
|         dash = 4.58
|     vertical = 35.5
|     broad ft = 10
|     broad in = 3
|    wonderlic = 
|     arm span = 31 7/8
|    hand span = 8
|         note = 40-yard dash was taken at Georgia's [[Pro Day]]; other results are from the [[NFL Scouting Combine]].<ref name="scouting report">{{cite web |url=http://nfl.com/draft/profiles/smith_musa |title=Archived copy |website=nfl.com |access-date=15 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030608184344/http://nfl.com/draft/profiles/smith_musa |archive-date=8 June 2003 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://draftscout.com/dsprofile.php?PlayerId=1708&DraftYear=2003 |title=Musa Smith College Football Profile |website=DraftScout.com |access-date=May 25, 2024}}</ref>
}}

===Baltimore Ravens===
[[File:Domata Peko tackles Musa Smith.jpg|thumb|Smith being tackled by [[Domata Peko]] of the [[Cincinnati Bengals]] in 2006]]
Smith was drafted with the 13th pick of the [[2003 NFL Draft#Round three|third round (77th overall)]] in the [[2003 NFL draft]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=2003 NFL Draft Listing |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/2003/draft.htm |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> He played sparingly for much of 2003 and 2004.

During a Week 11 game with the [[Dallas Cowboys]] in [[2004 NFL season|2004]], Smith was [[horse-collar tackle]]d from behind by [[Safety (American football position)|safety]] [[Roy Williams (safety)|Roy Williams]].  Smith's right leg was trapped under the weight of his body, resulting in a severe [[compound fracture]] of his right [[tibia]].  The injury basically put Smith out of action for two seasons (he played only one game in [[2005 NFL season|2005]]) and led to the NFL banning the tackle in May 2005.

In the [[2006 Baltimore Ravens season|2006]] Ravens training camp, Smith outplayed [[Mike Anderson (running back)|Mike Anderson]] in the battle for the backup running back job behind [[Jamal Lewis (American football)|Jamal Lewis]]. In three preseason games in 2006, Smith was tied for the NFL lead with [[LaMont Jordan]] with 123 rushing yards on 13 carries (7.9 yards per carry).

In total, Smith has rushed for 262 yards and three touchdowns on 62 carries (4.2 yards per carry) in 34 regular season appearances with the Baltimore Ravens, he has also caught 28 passes for 180 yards as of the end of the 2006 season.

He was the backup to [[Willis McGahee]] and had an increased role in [[2007 Baltimore Ravens season|the 2007 season]] as in past years he mainly played on special teams. Smith had 264 rushing yards and two touchdowns that year.

Through his stay with the Ravens, Smith collected 132 rushes for 496 yards, and four touchdowns on a 3.8 yard average. He also had 54 catches for 363 yards, on a 6.7 yard receiving average.

===New York Jets===
On May 27, 2008, Smith was signed by the [[New York Jets]].<ref>[http://www.newyorkjets.com/news/articles/show/2210-musa-smith-joins-backfield http://www.newyorkjets.com/news/articles/show/2210-musa-smith-joins-backfield] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080530184338/http://www.newyorkjets.com/news/articles/show/2210-musa-smith-joins-backfield |date=May 30, 2008 }}</ref> He was later released on August 26 prior to the regular season.

==Personal life==
Smith is a [[Muslim]].<ref name="Destiny's Dogs">{{cite book|title=Destiny's Dogs: Georgia's Championship Season|first=Mark|last=Schlabach|publisher=Atlanta Journal-Constitution|year=2003|page=112|isbn=978-1582616919}}</ref> His name translates to Moses in [[Arabic language|Arabic]]. He has a brother, Taalib, who is a personal trainer at the Big Vanilla Health Club in [[Arnold, Maryland]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Taalib Smith, Personal Trainer |url=http://www.bigvanilla.com/arnold/smith.html |publisher=Big Vanilla|date=January 1, 2011}}</ref> Smith has three children.

Smith's father, Kelvin Smith, ran training camps for [[Boy Scouts of America|Boy Scouts]], law officers from the family farm in [[New Bloomfield, Pennsylvania]], and as an agent with the [[United States Fish and Wildlife Service|U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service]]. In 1999, he was convicted on charges related to the [[1993 World Trade Center bombing]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Newberry|first=Paul|title=Musa Smith: Georgia RB suffers as father's dark secret is revealed|url=http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/other/20020911pagetwomusasmithp3.asp|accessdate=March 5, 2011|newspaper=Pittsburgh Post-Gazette|date=September 11, 2002|agency=Associated Press}}</ref><ref name="Good Son">{{cite web|last=Cyphers|first=Luke|title=The Good Son|url=https://assets.espn.go.com/magazine/vol5no19musa.html|work=ESPN The Magazine|access-date=March 5, 2011|author2=Feldman, Bruce|date=September 3, 2002}}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080530214927/http://www.newyorkjets.com/team/player/1358-musa-smith New York Jets bio] (archived)
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20040812015734/http://georgiadogs.collegesports.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/smith_musa00.html Georgia Bulldogs bio] (archived)

{{Ravens2003DraftPicks}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Musa}}
[[Category:1982 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:20th-century African-American sportsmen]]
[[Category:21st-century African-American sportsmen]]
[[Category:American football running backs]]
[[Category:Muslims from Pennsylvania]]
[[Category:Baltimore Ravens players]]
[[Category:Georgia Bulldogs football players]]
[[Category:New York Jets players]]
[[Category:People from Perry County, Pennsylvania]]
[[Category:Players of American football from Pennsylvania]]
[[Category:West Perry High School alumni]]