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SALT LAKE CITY — Alex Smith has a knack for being first.
As the only player from the University of Utah to be selected No. 1 overall in the NFL draft, Smith becomes the first to ever join the newly formed Utah football Ring of Honor.
The former Utes quarterback who played 16 years in the NFL after leading Utah to an undefeated season and Fiesta Bowl win as the original "BCS buster" was formally honored Thursday night during the season-opening game for the Utes at Rice-Eccles Stadium.
Standing next to his family, athletic director Mark Harlan and several university officials on the 50-yard line of the field he last played on in 2004, Smith watched during halftime as the university staff unfurled a banner to show his name and the years he played at Utah, making him a permanent fixture upon the walls of Rice-Eccles Stadium.
"There's so many guys that are deserving of this, guys that I look up to," a reserved Smith said prior to the game. "The amount of pride I have for this program and everything. To have been a part of it and be a part of it now as an alumni, it's changed my life, and I'm so incredibly grateful for it. I'm so proud of where the program's come, and it's continuing to go — continue to elevate."
It's an honor that Smith said he doesn't take lightly, either.
The former Utes star said "quarterbacks get too much credit" and that there are many more deserving players, but he's "overwhelmed" and "honored" to be the first for the University of Utah.
"I thought (Harlan) was calling for money, asking me for a donation," Smith joked, speaking about the conversation he had with Harlan before the athletic director shared the news.
"When he told me that it was going to be me, I just lost it. I did," Smith added. "I'm not sure that's what he expected. Just so overwhelmed by it. I just think back, I was 18 years old when I came here. I had no idea what laid ahead of me. This place changed my trajectory forever — teammates and coaches, this community, this program, I'm not the person I am today, and I certainly don't have the career I have today without without it.
"To come here to grow, to find out the meaning of hard work and sacrifice, the value of teamwork, being a part of something bigger than yourself, these are all life lessons that for me were ingrained here, and that I take with me to this day."
While at Utah, Smith was named a first-team All-American and was a Heisman Trophy finalist, in addition to being named the MWC Offensive Player of the Year before being selected No. 1 overall to the San Francisco 49ers in the 2005 draft.
Smith finished his Utah career with 5,203 passing yards and 47 touchdowns, and 1,072 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns. He still holds the school record for single-season touchdown passes (32) and total touchdowns (42).
