Playing first for the Bears, then the Cleveland Browns and the Dallas Cowboys, a young James “Jim” Ray Smith once dove into a voracious life of football, and across nine decades he never came up for air. Even after retiring from the NFL in the 1960s, Smith dedicated over a third of his life to the leading Cotton Bowl Athletic Association, settling in the city to which Tom Landry had once called him.
Smith, the Baylor football legend and legend at-large, died on October 3 at the golden age of 94.
One Big, Bold Bruin
James Smith (the name ‘Jim’ doesn’t appear in print till after Smith left college) came to Baylor from the tiny historic Brazoria County town of West Columbia.
Not much is written publicly about Smith’s childhood. The Cleveland Browns’ profile on Smith notes he “would never have gone to college without a scholarship.” He added, “No one in my family on either side had gone past the sixth grade.”
But he charged his way into athletic success at Baylor the moment he arrived in Waco. The 6’3”, 215-pound blond small-town boy became a starting left tackle for Baylor football in 1952, and by his sophomore year he was already drafted by the NFL for a future playing with the Cleveland Browns.
The Lariat sports reporters at the time described Smith as a “husky lineman who likes to hit them hard and shove them around.” He was versatile enough to play any position the team needed at the time. He blocked, tackled, and handled kicks for extra points. A teammate told The Lariat Smith was “bigger, stronger and faster” than any other tackle, overtly helpful to his teammates on the field and radiating confidence.
Smith was selected for The Lariat’s ‘BU Player of the Week’ on Oct. 8, 1953. Coach George Sauer told the newspaper there was no better tackle in the Southwest Conference that year. The Lariat couldn’t get enough of Smith’s talent, as just 20 days later, on Oct. 28, Smith won player of the week again after the Bears defeated Texas A&M, 14-13.
“I don’t keep track of what I do, I just play with and for the team,” Smith told The Lariat. “I think that everyone played good ball against A&M. I don’t believe that it is quite fair to single out any one individual for outstanding play, when it is necessary for the whole bunch of us to fight hard to gain a victory such as the one over the Farmers.”
Smith was selected for the prestigious annual Collier’s All-America football team in 1953. He was one of the top linemen in American collegiate football in the 1953-54 season, and is credited for being one of the major reasons Baylor had such a successful season, according to Baylor’s 1954 Round Up. He was recognized as an All-SWC tackle in 1953-54; participated in the North-South Shrine Game in 1954; and, ironically, helped the collegians defeat the reigning NFL champion Cleveland Browns in the 1955 College All-Star Game.
James Smith was a “good student, fine leader, great team man and steady performer who shines every Saturday,” as described in The Baylor Line, where Smith’s photo graced the cover in July 1954. He was crowned the Associated Press’ lineman of the week on Oct. 27, 1953, and many other all-American clubs gave him honorable mention from across the country.
Smith was injured in 1954, but did not lose much steam. He played at least five games handicapped with a steel plate in his shoe and continued to receive praise from sports reporters across Texas, The Lariat noted.
He was selected for All-American again in December 1954, this time for the Associated Press, before beginning his professional career with the Cleveland Browns. But he couldn’t make his trip from Waco to Ohio a one-way ride. At the time, Smith had served with the Army National Guard for several years, and he still had two years of service remaining.
The Army Years
Smith’s military career was briefly discussed in The Baylor Line’s September-October 1954 publication. He’d already been serving for three years with the National Guard as an enlisted soldier, but due to outstanding performance, he was recommended for officer candidate school in Fort Benning, Georgia. The article in question offers a glimpse at the moment Smith became an officer, providing a photograph of Smith being pinned with his twin silver second lieutenant bars.
Smith didn’t miss a single step on the football field once stationed in Fort Bragg, North Carolina. He continued throwing the pigskin for Uncle Sam in 1955, part of a team called the Big Red of XVIII Airborne Corps Artillery. He was quickly named an outstanding performer in Army play by the Army Times newspaper.
A group of Lariat reporters reached out to the public information officer stationed with Smith in North Carolina, inquiring about their famous alumnus.
“Yep, he’s the same one, okay, and what a player,” responded 2nd Lt. Jim Connally in a letter to the reporters. “‘Ole Glue Finger’s really played a whale of a ball season for the Big Red of XVIII Airborne Corps Artillery and provided me with some juicy copy.”
They called Smith “Big Jim” at the Army base, and he was found to be a fantastic player, even after sitting out a game with a broken ankle.
“We think a lot of Big Jim around these parts and are confident that had he played in the final game of the season, we would certainly not have been defeated,” Connally wrote.
A Brown and a Cowboy
After completing his contract with the National Guard, Smith played as a defensive end for the Cleveland Browns before being moved to the guard position. He played on the Browns’ offensive line for seven years before joining Tom Landry’s Dallas Cowboys, where his tenure lasted two seasons.
“From 1958-62, Smith made five straight Pro Bowls and was named first-team All-Pro three times,” reported the Dallas Morning News following Smith’s passing. “He retired after the ’61 season to pursue his real estate interests in Dallas, only to be talked into another season with the Browns.”
Smith made the Southwest Conference’s All-Decade team for the 1950s. In 1968 Smith was added to the Baylor Athletics Hall of Fame. Then came the College Football Hall of Fame in 1987 and Texas Sports Hall of Fame in 2007.
Texas Sports Hall of Fame curator Jay Black had known Smith for many years, meeting him at golf tournaments and events hosted at the museum.
“He was distinguished,” Black said. “… He was kind of grandfatherly. He was very friendly and he was pretty humble for all that he had accomplished. He wouldn’t be one of these people asking ‘how come my jersey isn’t up?’ or ‘I could use more space in my exhibit.’ He wasn’t like that at all.”
A Long and Productive Retirement
When Smith eventually retired from football altogether in 1965, he had no plans to stop working. He made the Dallas-Fort Worth area his home base, and warehouse leasing and industrial space distribution were his trade. He ultimately found success in the Metroplex commercial real estate market, working for the famous Ed Gaylord for 28 years.
Smith served on the Cotton Bowl Board for over 30 years starting in the 1970s, once as its chair and then team selection chair. The Dallas Morning News shared an interview with Smith’s friend and former colleague John Wooten. Wooten described Smith, a family man and person of faith, as one who “lived the Ten Commandments.”
“He was just an outstanding player,” Wooten is quoted. “- and even more so just a tremendous, God-fearing, activist person.”
