WILLIAMS: Waiting For Her Moment
Oct 23, 2017 | Soccer
| Charean Williams, Class of '86, has covered the Dallas Cowboys for two decades and has written for the Orlando Sentinel and Fort Worth Star-Telegram, among other outlets. She is a Pro Football Hall of Fame voter and the past president of the Pro Football Writers of America. Charean is a member of the Texas A&M Former Journalism Student Association's Hall of Honor. She currently writes for Pro Football Talk. You can follow her on twitter @NFLCharean. |
Rheagen Smith is proud of her father, Emmitt Smith, and the accomplishments that earned him Pro Football Hall of Fame induction. She does, after all, wear No. 22 like he did, a choice that makes Emmitt Smith "extremely proud." But Smith would rather Aggies know her as a standout Texas A&M soccer player than Emmitt Smith's daughter.
When the freshman finishes her career, she hopes to have left her own legacy.
"It's been a part of my life as long as I can remember," Rheagen said of being known as Emmitt Smith's daughter. "I'm used to it. It doesn't bother me. It doesn't faze me. I'm here to do whatever I have to do to get my goals achieved. The outside influence of what other people think doesn't bother me. It goes over my head.
"I am his daughter, after all."
Great night with the family! @PatSmithTY #TeamRheagen22 #Aggies pic.twitter.com/C1qjt377bJ
— Emmitt Smith (@EmmittSmith22) September 11, 2017
The NFL's all-time leading rusher, who rushed for 18,355 yards in a 15-year career, becomes Rheagen Smith's father when he sits in the stands with other parents. Despite being a Florida graduate, he proudly wears A&M gear even for the Aggies' game against his alma mater.
"Blood is thicker than water," said Emmitt Smith, who admits he gets more nervous watching his daughter than he did before his three Super Bowls. "I am always going to root for my child to perform at her peak. It doesn't mean that I don't love my school; I just love my daughter more."
30 years ago I signed with @FloridaGators and now @rheagensmith is signing with @TAMU! Proud to be by my daughter's side! #gogators #gigem pic.twitter.com/9fLODTfb61
— Emmitt Smith (@EmmittSmith22) June 12, 2017
The Aggies love where they are nearing the postseason. They have won nine in a row since a 1-0 loss to Auburn on Sept. 15 and remain in the hunt for the SEC regular-season title, with the SEC tournament starting Sunday.
Smith, a forward, has provided some valuable minutes during the winning streak with the Aggies "navigating" injuries. She has played 261 minutes in 13 games off the bench this season, while learning what it takes to excel in the SEC.
"She's not used to playing against women," A&M head coach G Guerrieri said. "She's used to playing against girls. The physicality, especially the physicality of playing against grown women, world-class athletes in the SEC, that takes a little bit of getting used to. That'll be the biggest line of improvement in her game from this year even to next year is how much stronger she'll be on the ball and learning to use her body, while at the same time, continuing to be a goal-scoring threat."
After earning a spot on the United States U-18 Women's National Team roster in 2015, Smith became a top recruit out of Dallas' Greenhill School. Guerrieri said the Aggies noticed three things while recruiting Smith: She was a great athlete, a smart goal scorer and a great teammate.
"Those are three big, big characteristics that we're always looking for with forwards," Guerrieri said.
Emmitt Smith said his daughter is "a better athlete than I was." In fact, Rheagen credits her mother, Hope Wilson, for her athleticism, though Smith said she inherited her father's drive and his mental toughness.
Wilson works as a fitness instructor in Dallas, serving as Rheagen's personal trainer in the offseason.
"I think my athletic ability is a little bit more than Emmitt's," Wilson said, chuckling. "I would say she got 70 percent from me and 30 percent from him."
Wilson has become familiar with the route from Dallas to College Station, having missed only Aggie one home game this season. Wilson calls herself a "full-time soccer mom," a role she has played since Rheagen began playing soccer when she was 4 years old.
"She was good right off the bat," Wilson said. "She scored all her team's goals."
Smith scored 20 goals and made 12 assists during her 2015-16 high school year, which is why she expected to have her first college goal by now. She has six shots, including two on goal.
"I'm just waiting for my moment," Smith said. "I've been close. I'm just waiting on it, and it's going to come. I know it is."
Players Mentioned
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