FLORENCE, Ala. — Redshirt senior quarterback TJ Smith earned some major recognition from the NCAA on Tuesday, as Jalyn Johnson from the FCS social media page named the University of North Alabama quarterback as the player of the week.
Smith was instrumental in UNA’s 47-34 win over No. 10 Abilene Christian, as he was responsible for six touchdowns. He set new career-highs in yardage, going 17-for-24 passing with 220 yards and four touchdowns and rushing nine times for 94 yards and two more touchdowns.
The Fort Lauderdale native tied the all-time school record for touchdowns responsible for in a single game, a mark set by Luke Wingo in 2015 and Noah Walters in 2023.
His performance led to UNA’s first win over a ranked FCS opponent in school history. Last season, UNA defeated an unranked Chattanooga team who went on to finish No. 14 in last year’s FCS polls, but the win over ACU makes it official with a win over a team ranked at the time of play.
Some of Smith’s key plays included an early two-yard rushing touchdown on a misdirection fake, a 46-yard breakaway run from near midfield, a 37-yard pass to Kobe Warden to make it 34-33 in the fourth quarter, then another pass to Warden later in the frame to just about put the game away at 47-34.
This season, Smith has completed 64-of-96 passes for 747 yards, 10 touchdowns and just one interception. He owns a 66.7 completion percentage. Smith has also rushed 50 times for 207 yards and three touchdowns. When taking out sacks and negative plays, Smith is gaining 292 yards.