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STILLWATER — If he found himself seated across a poker table from Maealiuaki Smith, Patrick Walsh wouldn’t be in a hurry to push any of his chips to the middle.
“I would never play poker against him,” said Walsh, Smith’s high school coach at Junipero Serra High School in San Mateo, California. “He could have a straight flush or 10-3 off suit and you couldn’t tell.”
And Smith takes his poker face to the football field. Whether the young quarterback just threw a pick-six or a 70-yard touchdown, his demeanor won’t change.
Following his first start for Oklahoma State last Saturday, Smith’s teammates continually talked about his calmness and his confidence in the heat of battle.
Smith threw for 326 yards, completing 72.2% of his passes with two touchdowns and an interception in the 56-48 loss to Texas Tech.
At the end of the Cowboys’ suffocating season, his performance was a breath of life. And he’ll be back in the same role when the Pokes visit Colorado for an 11 a.m. kickoff Friday at Folsom Field in Boulder.
“I think you would say he probably played exceptionally well for a true freshman,” OSU coach Mike Gundy said. “I think all of it surprised me, just because you don’t ever know until we put him out there and let him play.
“I thought he had poise and played with confidence.”
More: Oklahoma State football faces unique problems vs Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders, Travis Hunter
Oklahoma State’s Maealiuaki Smith prepares for practice during an Oklahoma State University Cowboys spring football practice at Sherman E. Smith Training Center in Stillwater, Okla., Tuesday, April 16, 2024.
Only twice in the previous 11 years has Gundy handed the starting job to a true freshman quarterback, so this was clearly a big moment for Smith.
But never too big.
“Just having the confidence in myself and in the play…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/maealiuaki-smith-qb-brings-calming-111549628.html
Author : The Oklahoman
Publish date : 2024-11-27 11:15:00
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