LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Join KTNV sports reporter Tina Nguyen as she walks 100 yards with Maurice Smith, a safe for the XFL's Vegas Vipers.
TINA NGUYEN: We are hanging out with Maurice Smith, a safety for the Vegas Vipers! Maurice, how does it feel to be back out here on a football field?
MAURICE SMITH: It's crazy. I mean, football has been my life, so it's a blessing to get back to doing what I love, and just being out with the camaraderie and being with the guys. It's cool.
NGUYEN: Why is it so important for you to continue to chase this dream of playing ball?
SMITH: My main purpose is just keeping it alive for my son, who looks up to me, and for my younger brother, who played at Texas A&M. So gig 'em — even though I didn't go there, but I just love the game. Seeing that my son wanted to do it just makes me want to keep going.
NGUYEN: Tell us a little bit more about your son. What's his name? How old is he?
SMITH: Maurice Smith III. I'm the second, but his middle name is Chosen. He came out with red hair, so the name Chosen really stuck with him. He's five, and he plays football — he actually won a Super Bowl in first-year flag football this past year.
NGUYEN: We just talked about Texas A&M, the SEC, and you are an SEC guy. Tell us what it was like to play for Nick Saban.
SMITH: Playing for the NFL and Nick Saban was a business — but it was also learning the game of football and life. He taught me a lot. And even after I left and went to Georgia for one year, it was nothing like playing for Alabama.
NGUYEN: You are getting the chance to learn from one of the greatest DBs to have ever played the game, Rod Woodson. What is it been like to be around him?
SMITH: It's a blessing to my game. Being around him, you're learning about the knowledge of the game and just seeing what type of manager and what type of work that he puts behind himself. He taught me, just last practice a lot in just one conversation. And he said to just trust my game and trust what I see through film, and just make the plays that come.
