ALTOONA, Pa. -- Penn State great Steve Smith, a captain on the 1986 national championship team who went on to a long NFL career as a fullback, died Saturday after a lengthy battle with ALS. He was 57.
Smith was selected in the third round of the 1987 NFL draft by the Raiders. He had a nine-year NFL career with the Raiders and Seahawks, primarily serving as a blocking fullback but also rushing for 1,627 yards and nine TDs.
Smith was diagnosed with ALS in 2002 and dealt with the debilitating disease for the remainder of his life. He was unable to walk or talk for many years leading up to his death.
The following is from an outstanding extensive profile on Smith from four years ago by Frank Bodani of the York Daily Record.
Fullback Steve Smith helped lead that (1986) team, arguably the school's most famous. Football gave him that, as well as close friends he still cherishes. It gave him a high-paying career and a family.
And yet has it taken away even more?
He stopped watching the games and doesn't talk about them. He and his family believe the brutal hits he absorbed as a fullback at Penn State and in the NFL have led to the ALS that has robbed him of so much of his life the past 15 years.
"I don't watch football at all; it's really put a bad taste in my mouth," said Steve's wife, Chie Smith.
She understands the give-and-take, of course.
"What can you say, it's really tough. But I wouldn't want my children to play the game."
PENN STATE HOOPS
HOSTS CORNELL TONIGHT
The Penn State basketball team should get a tough test tonight when it hosts Cornell at 6:30 on BTN.
The Nittany Lions are 2-1 and coming off an easy win over St. Francis Brooklyn, 74-59. Cornell is 4-0 with a win over Colgate, which just beat Syracuse. Don't be surprised if Cornell ends up taking down the Lions in this one.
This is the kind of game Penn State must win to build some confidence, since the non-conference schedule is going to get much more difficult after this. The Lions' next game is against LSU.
DUQUESNE OFF
TO TOUGH START
The Duquesne basketball team won its season opener but has lost four in a row, including a gut-wrenching 84-76 game to Colorado in overtime at the Paradise Jam tournament in the Virgin Islands on Saturday.
Colorado hit a 3 at the buzzer to force overtime, then controlled things in the extra session to steal the win.
Duquesne got blown out by Northeastern on Friday night in the tournament, 71-55. It will play its third and final game of the even Monday afternoon against Bradley.
Last Monday the Dukes lost at home to Weber State, 63-59, so they went 0-3 for the week.
COLONIALS FALL TO
FAMILIAR FOE AT HOME
Robert Morris left behind the Northeast Conference, where it enjoyed great success for several decades, and found a new home in the Horizon League. The Colonials still found spots on their non-conference schedule to face a couple of old NEC rivals, as Mount St. Mary's and Saint Francis are on the slate.
Mount St. Mary's visited UPMC Events Center on Friday night and came away with a 74-70 overtime win over Robert Morris.
There's no getting around it, this was a bad loss for the Colonials, who were up 15 points in the second half before squandering the lead and the game.
Robert Morris also lost last Monday to Ohio, 85-71.
PENN STATE MEN'S SOCCER
LOSES IN NCAA TOURNAMENT
The Penn State men's soccer team had its season come to an end with an 8-2 loss at home Sunday night to Hofstra in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
According to the school, Penn State had 12 players miss time during the week with non-COVID illness. The football team also had that issue as many players battled the flu over the past week.
Penn State won the Big Ten regular-season and tournament championships this season and finished 13-7-1.
PENN STATE WOMEN'S SOCCER
FALLS IN NCAA TOURNAMENT
The Lady Lions saw their season come to an end Sunday in Los Angeles with a 2-0 loss to South Carolina in the third round of the NCAA Tournament. This was fifth consecutive season Penn State reached the third round of the NCAAs.
The Lady Lions finished the season 12-8-1.
LOOKING AHEAD
TO THIS WEEK
Penn State basketball: Tonight vs. Cornell, 6:30; Friday vs. LSU in Florida, 7; Saturday vs. Oregon State or Wake Forest in Florida, 4 or 7
Duquesne basketball: Today vs. Bradley in Virgin Islands, 1; Sunday vs. American, 2
Robert Morris basketball: Saturday at Davidson, 2
Penn State wrestling: Friday at Penn, 7; Sunday vs. Lehigh, 2
Penn State hockey: Tuesday at St. Thomas, 8; Wednesday at St. Thomas, 8
