football
Alan Babbitt
Junior will take to the NFL Draft podium on Friday, April 26th.
Pictured is junior Derrick Smith.
Hope University two-sport athlete derrick smith He was selected to announce the Denver Broncos' third-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft in downtown Detroit.
The three-day NFL Draft will be televised on ESPN and NFL Network.Rounds 2 and 3 begin Friday, April 26th at 7:00 p.m.
The junior health and physical education major (Edwardsburg High School) from Niles, Michigan, wears a prosthetic leg and competes in Flying Dutchman soccer as a defensive lineman and in track and field in the long jump, discus and javelin.
Mr. Smith's story attracted national attention last fall when it was aired as part of USAA Insurance's TV special, “Sports Courage: The Greatness of the Gridron,” which aired on CBS.
In 2023, Smith was selected as the recipient of the Hope Athletics Karen Page Courage Award.
When Smith was a child, he was diagnosed with cancer and had part of his right leg amputated.
Last fall, Smith appeared in two games as a defensive lineman for the Flying Dutchmen football team, recording one tackle and finishing the regular season with an 8-2 record.
Smith also represented Team USA at the 2022 International Wheelchair and Amputee Sports Federation World Games in Santo Antonio, Portugal. Smith won first place in the discus throw, long jump and 100 meter dash.
