Ray Gene Smith (November 27, 1928 – August 16, 2005) was an American professional

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who played four seasons with the

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of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He played

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at Cameron State Agricultural College and Hardin College.

Early life and college

Ray Gene Smith was born on November 27, 1928, in

Anadarko, Oklahoma Anadarko is a city in and the county seat of Caddo County, Oklahoma, United States. The city is 50 miles (80.5 km) southwest of Oklahoma City. The population was 5,745 at the 2020 census. History Anadarko got its name when its post offic ...

. He attended

Lawton High School Lawton High School (LHS) was the first high school built in Lawton, Oklahoma. It is a part of Lawton Public Schools. Lawton High is located at 601 Northwest Fort Sill Boulevard in Lawton, Oklahoma. The school was originally housed in a building o ...

Lawton, Oklahoma Lawton is a city in and the county seat of Comanche County, Oklahoma, Comanche County, in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. Located in western Oklahoma, approximately southwest of Oklahoma City, it is the principal city of the Lawton metropolitan ar ...

. Smith first played

at Cameron State Agricultural College. He was later a two-year starter for the Hardin Indians of Hardin College—now known as Midwestern State University. He was inducted into Midwestern State's Hall of Honor in 2013.

Professional career

After graduating from Midwestern State University in 1950, he served in the

U.S. Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionary ...

for four years. After leaving the Marines, he played for the

where in 1956, he was named a second-team All-NFL performer by the ''

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''. He played in 40 career games, all starts, for the Bears from 1954 to 1957, recording nine interceptions for 124 yards, 27 punt returns for 156 yards, four kick returns for 78 yards, and four receptions for 50 yards. Smith also started one playoff game in 1956.

Personal life

After 1957, he decided to return to academia at the

University of Texas Law School The University of Texas School of Law (Texas Law) is the law school of the University of Texas at Austin, a public research university in Austin, Texas. According to Texas Law’s ABA disclosures, 87.20% of the Class of 2022 obtained full-time ...

graduating in 1962 with his

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

. He practiced criminal law in

Wichita Falls, Texas Wichita Falls ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Wichita County, Texas, United States. It is the principal city of the Wichita Falls metropolitan area, Wichita Falls metropolitan statistical area, which encompasses all of Archer County, Tex ...

for 35 years. During his time practicing law, he was suspended more than once for neglecting a client's file and ultimately disbarred when he was 73 on September 17, 2002. In his lifetime, he had a daughter, two grandchildren, five great-grandchildren, and two brothers. He died at the age of 76 in

Garland, Texas Garland is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, located within Dallas County, Texas, Dallas County with portions extending into Collin County, Texas, Collin and Rockwall County, Texas, Rockwall counties. It is located northeast of Dallas and is a ...

and was buried at Anadarko City Cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Ray Gene 1928 births 2005 deaths American football defensive backs Cameron Aggies (junior college) football players Midwestern State Mustangs football players Chicago Bears players People from Anadarko, Oklahoma Players of American football from Oklahoma University of Texas School of Law alumni United States Marine Corps personnel of the Korean War