Arkansas Business

This story is from the archives of ArkansasSports360.com.

When Wynrick Smothers was in high school, he backed up future LSU quarterback Jordan Jefferson for a couple of years before getting his shot at starting. Then all he did his senior season at Destrehan High School outside of New Orleans was complete 152 of 252 passes for 2,265 yards and 20 touchdowns, run 82 times for 347 yards and eight more TDs and lead the Wildcats to a 14-0 record and the Louisiana 5A state championship.

Fast forward four years and Smothers, a fourth-year junior, is taking over the reins at quarterback at Central Arkansas where expectations are high for him to again shine after a couple of years as a backup, this time to Nathan Dick, a high-profile quarterback in his own right. Dick, who threw for a UCA-record 3,275 yards and 32 touchdowns in 2011 and led the Bears to a 9-4 record and the second round of the FCS playoffs, agreed to a free-agent deal with the Dallas Cowboys in April.

“It’s been pretty much the same,” Smothers said of his days behind “two really good quarterbacks” while honing his own skills. “You just sit back and watch and pay attention and learn as much as you can,” he said.

With a strong set of receivers, Smothers is ready to see what the Bears can accomplish this season.

“I’m looking forward to it — going out there and having fun and playing to the best of my ability,” he said. “I just want us all to come together and have a really good season.”

UCA Coach Clint Conque got a glimpse of what may be in store from Smothers during the spring. “Wynrick completed 74 percent of his passes in the spring for 700 yards, seven touchdowns and no interceptions and only had one missed assignment in the three scrimmages that he played in,” Conque said. “I don’t want to put an undue amount of pressure on a young man, but we’ve had some pretty good quarterback play around here over the years and I’m not sure we’ve had a young man go through spring practice who was as efficient as Wynrick was this past spring.

“Wynrick gives us a little bit different dimension, more of a dual-threat type of quarterback. He’s 6-1, 210. He’s a legitimate 4.7 quarterback speed-wise.”

(Coach Clint Conque believes a championship is in reach for Central Arkansas. Read Justin Acri of KABZ-FM, 103.7 The Buzz interviews Conque about this season and beyond in the digital edition of ArkansasSports360.com's 2012 Football Preview.)

Smothers looks to be passing the ball to Jesse Grandy, Dominique Croom, Al Lasker, Dezmin Lewis and Bret Soft, as well as Austin Haywood, who transferred in from Oklahoma. It’s a crew Conque is high on. “I really like our receiving corps,” Conque said. “I really like the size and athleticism.”

Seniors Terence Bobo and Jackie Hinton return to power the running game and are joined by freshman Wesleigh Foster, who gained a game-high 121 yards in the spring game.

(A rematch against Hugh Freeze? Conque looks forward to meeting Ole Miss this season. Discover why in the digital edtion of ArkansasSports360.com's 2012 Football Preview.)

On defense, the Bears return eight starters from last season and get one back from 2010 in junior Radarius Winston, who started eight games as a sophomore before redshirting last year. Those returnees have Conque enthused about his defensive squad, which will again operate out of a 4-3 scheme.

“We’re really excited about our defense,” Conque said. “Three of the last four years we’ve led the conference in scoring defense.” While Conque says the Bears “don’t have that one dominant player, that NFL-type player that we’ve had in the past years,” he singles out senior noseman Justin Williams as “one that could be.”

Other key returnees on the defensive unit are linebackers Seth Allison and Justin Heard and defensive back Jestin Love. On special teams, kicker Eddie Camara, who hit a 19-yard game-winning field goal last year against Texas State, and punter Kevin Buford are both back.