Embracing the underdog role

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This article was published 09/05/2025 (197 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Jaylen Smith is living out a dream for two.

The rookie linebacker was at a Shoeless Joe’s in his hometown of Hamilton, Ont., with 60 of his closest family and friends when the Winnipeg Blue Bombers submitted his name in the second round, 15th overall, of last month’s CFL draft.

After hugging his parents, he turned to embrace his twin brother, Jawaun, who Smith is convinced would’ve also been selected that night had health issues not derailed his career.

Jawaun was the more touted athlete of the brothers but stepped back from football once Smith left for college, owing to issues with his liver.

“It kind of felt like an out-of-body experience,” Smith said recently about draft night.

“I didn’t really take it all in in the first minute, I just wanted to be with my family, just be there with them, and just enjoy the time being with them. But the next day, me and him just sat down and talked about (it), we dreamt about this since we was young, and I know that he can’t join me, but I know he’s still proud of me and what I’m doing.”

The twins dreamed of playing pro soccer during their earliest days. Smith, who is younger by 14 minutes, was by his brother’s side at every step.

“Me and him were just inseparable, two strikers scoring every game. We was just known as those twins, every team would look out for us,” he said.

Eventually, Jawaun switched to the gridiron, and his brother later followed. While Jawaun starred at running back, Smith made a name for himself as a do-it-all player in three phases.

By the time they reached high school, the twins were talking about making it as pro football players, and that’s really where Smith’s story begins.

His Grade 9 campaign brought a broken ankle that ended his season on the first play. The next year, the twins transferred schools but were forced to sit out the entire year due to transfer rules. Grade 11, and the first few games of Grade 12, brought another ailment, this time a separated shoulder.

Already undersized at 5-11, Smith was a zero-star recruit with hardly any experience playing high school ball and no interest from schools in the south.

The twins opted to reclassify and attend St. Thomas More Prep School in Connecticut. A fresh start brought more adversity — this time a limited season owing to the pandemic.

The following year included what was perhaps the most bitter-sweet moment of Smith’s career. While training with IMG Academy’s post-graduate program, he secured a walk-on opportunity with the University of North Texas.

It was the chance he had been hoping for, although he had to take this step without his brother for the first time in 17 years.

“I always try to use that as my fuel, even though he’s not out there on the field,” Smith said of Juwaun, who is now in firefighter school. “I still try to think, ‘There’s another one out there that’s not playing right now,’ but if he really wanted to play right now, he’d still do his thing.”

With the Mean Green, Smith started on special teams but blossomed into an impact player on defence.

A defensive back in high school, he put on some weight and suited up often at linebacker for North Texas, where he amassed 160 tackles and 12.5 tackles for a loss in 52 contests.

As time went on, Smith’s athleticism intrigued coaches enough to use him all over the defence. While playing at linebacker, he also played slot cornerback and safety, registering four pass breakups and two interceptions in his college career.

While Smith profiles as a weak-side linebacker at the pro level, the Bombers, who value versatility on defence, drafted him with a vision of being a chess piece that they can move around the board.

“(Defensive co-ordinator Jordan Younger), the defensive staff, will do an amazing job of figuring out all the places he can play, everything he can do, and they’ll try to plug him in those spots and make sure he’s successful,” said head coach Mike O’Shea, who, prior to the draft, had a first-hand experience of Smith’s infectious energy that brings a smile to the face of those around him.

“His interview was impressive,” said O’Shea. “He had a lot of energy. He’s very bright and bright-eyed. It was a good process, it was great talking to him, and you felt better when you were done talking, you just felt like you were gonna have a good day.”

Don’t discount his playing ability either. Smith was a third-team All-AAC selection last season after recording 106 total tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss, three pass breakups and one interception.

These days, Smith almost shrugs off the fact that he’s taken the long way to pro football, but he agrees that it has him battle-tested to make a team and make an immediate impact at the highest level.

“Everyone’s been an underdog, but I guess I have been an underdog a little bit in my career. I always use it to fuel me. I never really let it set me down. I like being an underdog because then when I make a play, they’re like, ‘Who’s that?’ So I let it fuel me and, honestly, it helps me make plays,” he said.

Also fuelling him is a reminder that he’s doing it for Jawaun just as much as he’s doing it for himself.

“I’m gonna try to make him proud and do my best to the ability I can on the field.”

joshua.frey-sam@freepress.mb.ca