Son of Dallas Cowboys Legend Looking to Keep Family Legacy Going in Texas

Dylan Grausz | Aug 28, 2024

Sep 16, 2023; Stanford, California, USA; Stanford Cardinal running back E.J. Smith (22) runs with the ball past Sacramento State Hornets defensive lineman Brandon Knott (56) during the second quarter at Stanford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-USA TODAY Sports / Sergio Estrada-USA TODAY Sports

For years, residents of Texas got to watch Dalls Cowboys legend Emmitt Smith take Dallas by storm, evolving into arguably the greatest NFL running back of all time, winning three Super Bowls while setting the record for most career rushing yards, rushing touchdowns and rushing attempts. And now in 2024, the legacy of the name Smith will continue to be carried out in Texas as Emmitt’s son E.J. heads to Texas A&M in an effort to revitalize his career.

In 2023, Smith ended his final season at Stanford as the top running back in terms of stats, finishing the year with 53 carries for 218 yards and a touchdown. However, he was not the team’s leading rusher as both quarterbacks Justin Lamson and Ashton Daniels finished with more yards while also sharing a backfield with Casey Filkins and Sedrick Irvin. On top of that, the Cardinal featured an offensive line with five new starters while also struggling to establish a potent run block.

A former four-star prospect out of Jesuit College Prep, Smith committed to Stanford in 2020 over offers from schools like A&M, Florida (his father’s school), Georgia and Alabama and spent 2020-2023 with the Cardinal before announcing his transfer in January of this year. Smith played sparingly his first two seasons as a Cardinal, playing in only two games in the COVID-shortened 2020 season and being used primarily as a backup to Austin Jones and Nathaniel Peat in 2021. However, after Jones and Peat both transferred, Smith entered 2022 as the starting running back and was expected to break out, but an injury ended his season after only two games in which he amassed over 200 yards on 30 carries.

Entering his final season of eligibility and looking to end his college career on a dominant note, Smith opted to transfer to A&M where he is currently competing with Le’Veon Moss and Amari Daniels for carries. Even though he is listed as the third back behind Moss and Daniels, Smith should expect to see a larger workload as the season progresses and will factor in big time to the Aggies offense.

At Stanford, Smith amassed a total of 557 rushing yards and five touchdowns while catching 59 passes for 386 yards and three touchdowns during his 24 game stint with the Cardinal.

With Smith gone, Irvin enters the season as the expected starter for Stanford while freshmen Micah Ford and Chris Davis Jr. fight for carries as well. With an offensive line that remains intact from last year while also gaining an added year of experience, it will be interesting to see how Stanford’s ground game fares this season.