Bubba Smith

Charles Aaron "Bubba" Smith (February 28, 1945 – August 3, 2011) was an American professional football player who became an actor after his retirement from the sport. He first came into prominence at Michigan State University, where he twice earned All-American honors as a defensive end on the Spartans football team. He had a major role in a 10–10 draw with Notre Dame in 1966 that was billed as "The Game of the Century." He was one of only three players to have his jersey number retired by the program. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1988.

He played nine years in the National Football League (NFL) with the Baltimore Colts (1967–1971), Oakland Raiders (1973–1974) and Houston Oilers (1975–1976). The first selection of the 1967 NFL Draft, he was the Colts' starting left defensive end for five seasons who played in Super Bowls III and V, the latter with the winning side. He was named to two Pro Bowls and was a First-Team All-Pro in 1971. Despite being 6 feet 7 inches (2.01 meters) tall and weighing 265 pounds (120.20 kilograms), his tremendous speed and quickness usually caused him to draw two blockers.

During his acting career, he mainly specialized in comedic roles in films, television advertisements and programs. For about a decade following his retirement from football, he appeared in various commercials for Miller Lite. His best-known role was as Moses Hightower in the first six Police Academy movies.

Early life

Smith was born on February 28, 1945 in Orange, Texas, and raised in nearby Beaumont. His father was Willie Ray Smith Sr., a football coach who accumulated 235 victories in a career spent at three high schools in the Beaumont area. It was at Charlton-Pollard High School in Beaumont where the son got to play for the father. The younger Smith developed into one of the state's best-ever high school football players.

Football career

College

Smith originally had hopes of playing college football at the University of Texas. Even though Longhorns head coach Darrell Royal was willing to offer him an athletic scholarship, he was prohibited from doing so because of the prevalent racial segregation throughout the Southern United States. At the time, Texas was a member of the Southwest Conference (SWC), which finally integrated in 1967. The university's football program did not do likewise until three years later in 1970. The situation motivated Smith to become a much better player.

Smith played college football at Michigan State University. He was awarded with All-America honors in 1965 and 1966. Smith was a popular athlete at Michigan State, with the popular fan chant of "Kill, Bubba, Kill."

His final game at Michigan State was a 10–10 draw with Notre Dame at Spartan Stadium on November 19, 1966. It was hyped as "The Game of the Century" because both teams were undefeated, untied and ranked atop the national polls entering the contest (Notre Dame was #1 at 8–0–0, Michigan State #2 at 9–0–0). Early in the first quarter, Smith tackled Fighting Irish starting quarterback Terry Hanratty, who suffered a separated left shoulder on the play. Hanratty was replaced for the remainder of the match by Coley O'Brien. Smith, who admitted that Hanratty's injury actually backfired on the Spartans, stated, "That didn't help us any. It just let them put in that O'Brien who's slippery and faster and gave us more trouble. The other guy just sits there and waits, and that's what we wanted." Michigan State finished second behind Notre Dame in the voting for the National Championship.

In 1988, Smith was enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame. Michigan State retired his number 95 jersey on September 23, 2006, prior to the Spartans' home game against Notre Dame, amid repeated cheers of his old slogan from the student section. This game also celebrated the 40th anniversary of the "Game of the Century."

Professional

Smith spent nine seasons in the NFL as a defensive end. He was the first overall selection in the 1967 NFL draft, chosen by the Baltimore Colts. The Colts won Super Bowl V at the end of the 1970 season, earning Smith his only Super Bowl ring. However, in interviews, Smith stated that he would never wear the ring, out of a sense of disapointment that he and his teammates were unable to win Super Bowl III. He was traded to the Oakland Raiders before the 1972 season, and finished his career with the Houston Oilers. He was selected All-Pro one year, All-Conference two years, and went to two Pro Bowls.

Acting career

After leaving professional football, Smith began his acting career in small movie and television roles in the late 1970s and early 1980s. He is perhaps best known for his role as Moses Hightower in the Police Academy movie series, a role he reprised in all but one of the Police Academy sequels. Bubba appeared in the 1982 TV film Fighting Back: The Rocky Bleier Story. He was Arnold the driver in the 1983 movie Stroker Ace that cast stars such as Burt Reynolds, Ned Beatty, Jim Nabors, and Loni Anderson. He was a supporting character in the 1981 - 1982 flop Open All Night. He appeared in two episodes of the hit television series Married... with Children, once as the character "Spare Tire" Dixon and in a later episode as himself. He was the longtime spokesman of Baltimore-area law firm Cohen, Snyder, Eisenberg & Katzenberg. Smith starred in the short-lived television series Blue Thunder, partnering with Pro Football Hall of Fame defensive star Dick Butkus, with whom he frequently costarred in advertisements for Miller Lite beer. Smith also appeared in Tales of the Gold Monkey, in the episode called "God Save the Queen", along with fellow actor James Avery. He appeared on Good Times as Claude, a bodyguard/thug working for Marion "Sweet Daddy" Williams. He also appeared on an episode of The Odd Couple;when asked by Oscar Madison what his most embarrassing moment was, he replied, "When my mother named me 'Bubba'". Smith appeared in a 1982 Episode of Taxi (Season 4 Episode 19) where Smith's character played a football player trying to get back into the NFL after being cut. He inspired Tony, played by Tony Danza to train hard enough to earn his license back as a boxer. He also appeared on Macgyver (Season 7, Episode 10). Bubba also played a character named "Bones" in the October 22, 1993 episode of "Family Matters" where he played an enforcer to get his boss's money from Eddie Winslow. At the end he teams up with Steve Urkel to play the accordion.

Filmography

2012 DaZe: Vol. Too (sic) - NonSeNse 

2010 Blood River  

2008 Breaking the Huddle: The Integration of College Football

2006 Full Clip

2004 The Coach  

2001 Down 'n Dirty  

1995 Drifting School  

1994 The Silence of the Hams  

1993 Fist of Honor,   The Naked Truth 

1992 My Samurai  

1989 Stuck with Each Other,   Police Academy 6: City Under Siege  

1988 Police Academy 5: Assignment: Miami Beach  

1987 The Wild Pair   Police Academy 4: Citizens on Patrol  

1986 Police Academy 3: Back in Training,  Black Moon Rising  

1985 Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment  

1984 Police Academy  

1983 Stroker Ace

Personal life

Smith's brother Tody Smith played for the University of Southern California and for the Dallas Cowboys, Houston Oilers and Buffalo Bills.

Death

Smith was found dead in his Los Angeles home by his caretaker on August 3, 2011. He died from acute drug intoxication and heart disease. Phentermine, a weight-loss drug, was found in his system. His heart weighed more than twice that of an average human heart. He was 66 years old.