Vernon Smith (football)

Infobox NCAA Athlete
color = Red
fontcolor = Black
name = Vernon Smith


caption = Catfish Smith photo from the College Football Hall of Fame
college = Georgia
conference = Southern
sport = Football
jersey = 33
position = E
major =
minor =
nickname = Catfish
career_start = 1929
career_end = 1931
height_ft = 6
height_in = 2
weight_lb = 190
nationality = USA
birth_date = birth date|1908|1|14|mf=y
birth_place = Macon, Georgia
death_date = death date and age|1988|9|29|1908|1|14|mf=y
death_place =
highschool = Lanier High School Macon, Georgia
career_highlights =
awards =
honors = 1931 College Football All-America Team All-Southern Conference (1929-1931)
records =
championships =
championship_list =
tournaments =
tournament_list =

Vernon “Catfish” Smith (January 14, 1908 – September 29, 1988) played football at the University of Georgia from 1929 to 1931 and was named an All-American in 1931. In 1929, he scored all 15 points for Georgia in an upset of Yale University – scoring one touchdown by falling on a blocked punt in the end zone and another by receiving a pass, kicking an extra point and tackling a Yale player for a safety. The game was the first-ever played at Sanford Stadium.

Smith's nickname of "Catfish" is attributed to his eating of one raw and whole as bet while a student at Lanier High School in Macon, Georgia.

After completing his Georgia career as a football player in 1931 (he graduated with a B.S. in 1933), Catfish Smith went into coaching from 1932 to 1941 and coached at Georgia, the University of South Carolina and the University of Mississippi. He then joined the United States Army Air Forces, retiring in 1963 with the rank of colonel.

Smith's sports honors include being inducted into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame in 1966 and in the College Football Hall of Fame in 1979. His military honors included the Legion of Merit, Air Force Commendation Medal, World War II Victory Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Air Force Reserve Medal and Air Force Longevity Medal. He was born in Macon and died in California.

ee also

*1931 College Football All-America Team

References

* [http://www.gshf.org/site/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=293&Itemid=50 Georgia Sports Hall of Fame bio]
* [http://www.collegefootball.org/famersearch.php?id=30099 College Football Hall of Fame bio]
*Charles E. Martin, "I've Seen 'Em All: Half Century of Georgia Football", p.57, The McGregor Company, Athens, Georgia, 1961.

Persondata
NAME=Smith, Vernon
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=Smith, Vernon "Catfish", Smith, Catfish
SHORT DESCRIPTION=football player, baseball player, military serviceman
DATE OF BIRTH=January 14, 1908
PLACE OF BIRTH=Macon, Georgia, Georgia (U.S. state), United States
DATE OF DEATH=September 29, 1988
PLACE OF DEATH=California, United States