Louisiana Tech quarterback J ’ Mar Smith talks with coaches and players during a timeout in the second half of an NCAA college football game AP Photo / Sean Rayford
quarterbacks coach , for securing J ’ Mar ’ s signature . Before he knew the younger Smith , Rattay played against his father twice when he starred for LA Tech at quarterback .
“ That added a comfortable home feeling for me picking a college that I wanted to be at ,” J ’ Mar said .
He was grayshirted on the baseball team during his freshman year , but he made the LA Tech roster in the next year as a utility player after playing mostly catcher in high school . A 2018 left knee surgery forced him to stop playing , and he says today he still misses baseball every day .
J ’ Mar played in 44 football games across his college career after redshirting as a freshman , completing over 59 % of his passes for 51 touchdowns to only 21 interceptions . He currently sits third in career passing yards in the LA Tech record books and fourth in passing touchdowns . The dual-threat signal-caller also rushed for 856 yards and 15 touchdowns in college .
That was good enough for the New England Patriots , one of the NFL teams the elder Smith once played for , to sign J ’ Mar as an undrafted free agent in 2020 . However , he was quickly released .
He was then hired to coach quarterbacks at Huntington High School in Shreveport , La ., and later spent a brief stint as a practice roster quarterback for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League in 2021 . He spent time on two professional teams , but had yet to take a snap in a meaningful professional football game , and he thought about trying to play in Europe .
“ Not going to lie , I was going to go to Europe , because I just thought I was going to play football .” J ’ Mar said . “ In Canada , I just wish I had gotten an opportunity just to practice . I really didn ’ t get much of a chance to do anything but hand the ball off to our running backs . The opportunity I needed was just a chance to show coaches I can throw the ball and lead and provide consistently with the offense .”
Then , he was selected in the 12th round as the second quarterback taken by the Birmingham Stallions in the 2022 United States Football League Draft . He became the starting quarterback of the Stallions and led them to a 9-1 record in
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the regular season before helping his team win the inaugural USFL Championship Game later that year .
He was forced out of the championship game with a calf injury he sustained in the second half with quarterback Alex McGough coming in to take the reins and lead the Stallions to a 33-30 victory over the Philadelphia Stars .
J ’ Mar , a right-handed quarterback , was ranked as the best player in the USFL by Pro Football Network ’ s BJ Rudell entering the 2023 season , but he pulled nearly every tendon in his left ring finger while blocking on a reverse during the Stallions ’ first game . McGough went on to lead the Stallions to a 8-2 record with J ’ Mar , out for the season , watching from the sidelines .
J ’ Mar , who does plan to return to coaching one day , says he is not finished taking snaps on the field just yet .
Once his finger is healed , he may soon find himself in a competition for the starting quarterback spot with McGough , who was selected ahead of him in the USFL draft with the sixth overall pick . If so , he is not backing down .
“ As a quarterback , as a player , as a football person , you should compete ,” J ’ Mar said . “ As a person in general , you should compete in your daily life . It just makes things fun , it makes things better , it makes things competitive .”
The elder Smith said he is most proud of his son for playing football well enough at Meridian to get college offers , and everything he has accomplished since then has only added to his father ’ s pride .
“ I ’ m proud that he was able to advance past the stage of high school to the next stage ,” Kenny said . “ I was proud for him to graduate from college . I know he was blessed with a gift , it comes from his father , so my joy is just seeing my kids grab all the joy that comes from sports .” M
The Meridian Star File Photo
Former Meridian High School quarterback J ’ Mar Smith , left , is pictured with his father , Kenny Smith , at the younger Smith ’ s graduation from Louisiana Tech .
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