It's the little things in life Steve Smith missed while spending two months with his head immobilized.
His football career and plans for the NFL were in jeopardy, going to school was even more of a pain than usual, and everywhere he went people stared at the brace around his neck. Even with all that hanging over his head, the first thing Smith said about having his brace off was, "I finally get to shave again."The cracked vertebrae in his neck he sustained against BYU in late November has healed properly and Smith will be able to dazzle the crowd and give defensive coordinators ulcers with his stellar receiver play and unbelievable kick returning abilities.
Last Friday, doctors removed the brace and took x-rays and determined that Smith has fully recovered. They then gave Smith the green light to start working out again Feb. 1 even though they originally worried his days as a football star could have been over. The brace went on the shelf and out of Smith's life. Smith, of course, was able to breathe a huge sigh of relief. This time, without some plastic brace squeezing and choking him.
"I can go out in public without worrying about people staring at me," Smith said. "Little kids would come up and look right at me and ask me what happened."
Because of the injury Smith was unable to work out at all during the past two months, which means his body is far from football condition. Luckily, he has several months before he'll be asked to break off any 85-yard punt returns.
"I haven't been able to do anything," Smith said. "I've gotten pretty good at football on PlayStation though. My team can't be beat."
The NFL is on his mind now, and he plans on making his future playing on Sundays after leaving the U. That may have been the hardest part about not knowing if his neck would be able to hold up on the gridiron. He wondered where his life would go if a football was not in his hands.
"A little brace held my future and I wasn't sure what path I would have to take," Smith said. "If I couldn't play football, I would still have school, but I wouldn't know what to do.
"It's hard to deal with something you have no control over," Smith continued. "It's like being a little kid and an adult at the same time."
Smith isn't in a hurry to start working out any time soon because he still does not feel comfortable with the injury. This is understandable, seeing how it almost cost him the one thing he enjoys most.
With Smith returning to the lineup, Utah could have the MWC's most potent pass receivers inthe league. With Chris Christensen returning from a broken leg, Clifford Russell and Johnny Lundy both back along with Smith, the Utes should have no problems finding targets to chuck the ball at.