Fear not, Tennessee students: Mammoth lineman Trey Smith 'will not eat you'

Don’t worry, Tennessee students. It’s OK to approach Trey Smith on campus. He won’t bite.

“A lot of times people are scared. Just a friendly public service announcement I will not eat you, I will not harm you, I just want to say hi,” the 6-foot-6, 315-pound Smith joked on Tuesday after Tennessee completed its 10th spring practice.

Smith is an imposing presence regardless of the location. Although he’s an early enrollee, the former five-star out of University School of Jackson already has the body of a veteran SEC offensive lineman.

Adjusting to the speed of major college football has been Smith’s biggest hurdle in spring camp.

“Obviously being a freshman coming in here, you don’t have high expectations because you are playing against grown men every day,” said Smith, who was the first UT freshman to shed his black helmet stripe this spring. “I am just trying to bring it every day. (Offensive line) Coach (Walt) Wells does a great job of telling me there are going to be ups and downs. You want to keep going straight forward, just keep it going.”

Nearly everyone associated with Smith has praised his relentless work ethic and attention to detail. They all use the phrase “mature beyond his years.” How did the evolution happen?

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“It’s a really sensitive subject. When I was 15 years old my mom died, so I got a really good text from one of my personal heroes Artis Hicks (former NFL lineman from Jackson). He taught me, in that time it was tough, but it’s time to man up,” Smith said. “Essentially it was just time for me to grow up in a way. Just losing that person knowing the way I behave, the way I carry myself on and off the field, that is going to determine what type of man I am. That is going to make her proud.”

The changes Smith made weren’t drastic, but they were all done with an eye on his future.

“It was just time to sort of put the childish things aside, really time to get prepare for my future,” he said. “My mom always wanted me to get my degree, to be a young, successful African-American man. So it was time. I had to take the transitional steps. That is why I wanted to enroll early. It was just time for me to make my path.”

Although Smith misses his father, his homesickness has been eased by having his older sister on campus. Ashley Smith, a UT graduate, is the executive assistant for coach Butch Jones.

“If I don’t see her in the office, she will probably give me a call late at night. I might go upstairs to talk to her,” Smith said. “Before we started practice, I had a little bit more time after a lift, I had some extra time to do homework. I would sit up there in the office and just talk a little bit. I think that made the transition five hours away a little easier because I am home and my sister is here.”

Smith has been working at both tackle positions, and Jones said he has the ability to play anywhere on the line. The combination of Smith’s physical stature, mental acuity and work ethic is a total package every coach covets.

“That is what makes him special,” Jones said. “First of all, mentally the ability to pick up and retain information. The competitiveness, the drive to be great and not just on the football field, but in the classroom and in the game of life as well. He loves the weight room. He just wants to do anything possible to be great.”

Smith has benefited by the absence of some injured linemen during the spring. He is trying to take full advantage of the extra work he’s receiving.

“It’s extremely valuable. I know one of my first days we were doing one-on-ones and I was just like, ‘Man. I just need more reps to get adjusted to this,'” Smith said. “Having veteran guys like Jashon (Robertson), Brett (Kendrick), Coleman (Thomas) and Chance Hall really take me under their wing has been great. They have really taught me a lot of good things I have taken to the field and it’s helped me get a lot better.”

Smith returned to USJ two weekends ago to attend prom. He says he misses his friends whenever he sees them do “crazy things on Snapchat.”

But Smith is getting more comfortable at UT every day, even to the more labor-intensive strolls to class he makes while trying not to scare people.

“I told everyone back home the transition has not been too hard in regards to the classroom. My high school did a good job of preparing me for it,” Smith said. “I think the biggest transition honestly is just walking to class. Instead of walking down the hall a few hundred feet, I have to go walk across campus and go up the massive hill to Ayres Hall.”