CB Alphonso Smith and the Wake Forest turnaround

[cowboyjoe]

CB Alphonso Smith and the Wake Forest turnaround
11:00 AM Tue, Apr 14, 2009 | Permalink
Rick Gosselin E-mail News tips

Small cornerbacks aren't in great demand by colleges, so Alphonso Smith went to Wake Forest out of necessity. The Demon Deacons were the one big school that offered him a scholarship, so the 5-9 Smith signed his name on the dotted line. In hindsight, his only choice was his best choice.

"It's not an historic football school like The Ohio State and Michigan, Florida State and USC.," Smith said. "It's not a football factory. But I was really fortunate to be a part of Wake Forest. If I had to do it all over again today, I'd probably still go to Wake Forest even if I had all of those schools offering. My coaches and teammates were men of great character, decent human beings. There are a whole lot of positives being a Wake Forest guy, trust me."

Smith helped turn the program around. As a freshman, Smith was a reserve on a 4-7 team. But in his three seasons as a starter the Demon Deacons won 28 of 40 games and went to three consecutive bowls. Wake Forest won the ACC title in 2006 and played in the Orange Bowl. Smith was a two-time All-ACC selection at cornerback.