Geno Smith played college football at West Virginia, leading the Mountaineers to multiple bowl games, breaking numerous passing records, and garnering multiple awards before getting drafted by the New York Jets in the second round of the 2013 NFL Draft.
73 Facts About Geno Smith
2.
Geno Smith then spent time as a backup for the New York Giants and Los Angeles Chargers before unexpectedly making a career resurgence as the Seattle Seahawks' starting quarterback in 2022, earning his first Pro Bowl selection, having his first winning record and playoff berth as a starter, leading the league in completion percentage, and ultimately winning the Comeback Player of the Year award.
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Geno Smith's great-uncle, Danny Smith, was a record breaking All-American hurdler at Florida State, and his cousin Melvin Bratton was a star running back at Miami in the mid-1980s.
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Geno Smith was admitted to Norland Middle School's magnet program, which dedicated two hours per day to arts instruction.
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Geno Smith was named second-team all-Broward County as an athlete for 2007.
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Geno Smith was a first-team all-state selection in Florida Class 6A and a Parade All-American.
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Geno Smith was the No 1 rated player in Broward County according to the Miami Herald and South Florida Sun Sentinel, and finished No 2 in the voting for Mr Florida.
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Geno Smith finished his career as the third-best passer in Broward County history, and was named to the ESPN Top 150 prospects list.
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Geno Smith chose to attend West Virginia over offers from Florida State, South Florida, Boston College, and Alabama.
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Geno Smith attended West Virginia University, where he played for the West Virginia Mountaineers football team from 2009 to 2012.
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Geno Smith was an English major during his time at West Virginia.
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Geno Smith saw some action his freshman year as the backup behind senior Jarrett Brown.
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Geno Smith finished his freshman season with an 81.1 quarterback rating.
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Geno Smith got his first start in the season opener against the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers.
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Geno Smith led the first drive from the Mountaineers' 4-yard line.
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Geno Smith completed a pass to wide receiver Jock Sanders in the back of the end zone for a two-point conversion.
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Geno Smith finished the game completing 32 of 45 passes for 316 yards and one touchdown.
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Geno Smith won his first Big East Offensive Player of the Week for this performance.
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Geno Smith completed 14 of 29 pass attempts for 119 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception.
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Geno Smith won his second Big East Offensive Player of the Week for this performance.
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Geno Smith tied the record that was set in 2007 by Brian Brohm of the Louisville Cardinals.
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Geno Smith's 401 passing yards broke Tom Brady's Orange Bowl record of 396 that he set in the 2000 Orange Bowl.
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Geno Smith became the Big East single-season passing leader with 4,379 yards, breaking Brian Brohm's mark that he set in 2007.
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Geno Smith received an invitation to the NFL Scouting Combine where his performance was well received by scouts who highlighted his athleticism and strong arm but noted his ball placement needed improvement.
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Geno Smith was widely regarded as one of the top prospects alongside EJ Manuel of Florida State.
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Geno Smith was in attendance for the first round of the draft as many analysts and scouts expected him to be taken that night.
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Geno Smith declined to be interviewed by ESPN afterwards and originally planned to return home but later decided to attend the second day of the draft.
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Several league executives alleged Geno Smith did not handle the draft process in a professional manner which caused him to fall out of the first round while analysts pointed to his late-season decline as a senior at West Virginia, which exposed his flaws, as the primary reason.
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General manager John Idzik, following the selection, stated Geno Smith would compete with incumbent Mark Sanchez in training camp to determine the starting quarterback.
30.
Geno Smith fired his agency, Select Sports Group, upon the completion of the draft and sought new representation.
31.
Geno Smith signed with Roc Nation Sports on May 22,2013, with Kimberley Miale serving as his representative.
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Geno Smith worked out in his home state of Florida during the offseason, prompting questions as to whether or not he had spurned Sanchez by not attending Sanchez's Jets West summer camp in California.
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Geno Smith made his professional debut on August 9,2013, in the first preseason game against the Detroit Lions.
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Geno Smith completed 6-of-7 passes for 47 yards but left the game due to an ankle injury in the second quarter.
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Geno Smith started the Jets' third preseason game against the New York Giants completing 16 of 30 passes for 199 yards, a touchdown, and four turnovers.
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In Week 3 against the Buffalo Bills, Geno Smith completed 16 of 29 passes for 331 yards, rushing for a touchdown and passing for two touchdowns and two interceptions.
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Geno Smith became the first rookie quarterback in franchise history to throw for 300 or more yards in a game.
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The Jets faced the Atlanta Falcons on in Week 5; Geno Smith completed 16 of his 20 passes for 199 yards and three touchdowns.
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Geno Smith completed all four of his passes on the Jets' final drive, allowing Nick Folk to kick the game-winning 43-yard field goal.
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Geno Smith was named AFC Offensive Player of the Week and the Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Week for his performance.
41.
Geno Smith struggled during this stretch as he failed to score any points and committed eight turnovers; he was benched in favor of Simms against Buffalo and Miami leading coach Rex Ryan to be noncommittal in starting Geno Smith the rest of the year.
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Geno Smith showed gradual improvement as the Jets won three of their final four games.
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Geno Smith performed well until throwing a costly pick six in the fourth quarter.
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Geno Smith finished the game completing 15 of his 28 passes for 167 yards, a touchdown and interception.
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The Jets won their next contest against the Browns with Geno Smith completing 20-of-36 passes for 214 yards and three touchdowns.
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Geno Smith completed his rookie season with 3,046 yards, 12 touchdowns, and 21 interceptions.
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Geno Smith was named the starter for the 2014 season on August 22,2014.
48.
On October 3,2014, Geno Smith was fined $12,000 for yelling profanity at fans while walking to the locker room during halftime in Week 4.
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Geno Smith passed for a career-high 358 yards, three touchdowns, and no interceptions, completing 20-of-25 attempts for a perfect passer rating.
50.
Geno Smith suffered a fractured jaw after Enemkpali punched him in the face.
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Two days later, Geno Smith underwent surgery on his fractured jaw.
52.
On November 1,2015, Geno Smith entered the Jets' game against the Oakland Raiders in relief of Fitzpatrick, who left the game with an injured thumb.
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Two days later, Geno Smith was named starter for the following game in place of the struggling Fitzpatrick.
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The next day, it was revealed that Geno Smith had a torn ACL, effectively ending his 2016 season.
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Geno Smith was placed on injured reserve on October 26,2016.
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On March 28,2017, Geno Smith signed with the New York Giants.
57.
On November 5,2017, during Week 9 against the Los Angeles Rams, Geno Smith came in the game in relief of Eli Manning late in the fourth quarter.
58.
Geno Smith signed with the Seattle Seahawks on May 15,2019.
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Geno Smith competed with Paxton Lynch for the backup job behind Russell Wilson.
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Geno Smith was released on August 31,2019, along with Lynch, but was re-signed the next day, earning the backup job.
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Geno Smith did not see any game action during his first season with the team.
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Geno Smith went 4 of 5 for 33 yards, leading the Seahawks to a field goal on the second of his two drives.
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Geno Smith re-signed with the team for a third season on April 22,2021.
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Geno Smith made his first appearance of the 2021 season in Week 5 against the Los Angeles Rams after Russell Wilson left the game with a finger injury.
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Geno Smith was announced the starter after Wilson was placed on injured reserve.
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Geno Smith had competed for the starting quarterback spot with Drew Lock after the Seahawks traded Wilson.
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On December 21,2022, Geno Smith was selected to his first Pro Bowl.
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Geno Smith finished the regular season with numerous career highs, completing 399 of 572 passes.
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Geno Smith was the only quarterback to take every offensive snap for his team that season.
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Geno Smith was named Comeback Player of the Year by the Associated Press and the PFWA.
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On March 6,2023, Geno Smith re-signed with the Seahawks on a three-year, $75 million deal.
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Geno Smith is a Christian, frequently posting about his faith on his Twitter account.
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Geno Smith has been married to Hayley Eastham, whom he met in college, since 2015.