Honors & Awards
- Third Round NFL Draft Pick (Houston Oilers, 1980)
- NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship Winner ($2,000)
- First-Team All-Big Eight (1979)
- Three-Time First-Team Academic All-Big Eight (1977, 1978, 1979)
- Team Captain (1979)
- Nebraska Guy Chamberlin Trophy Recipient (1979)
- East-West Shrine Game Participant (1980)
1979 (Senior)
A three-year starter for the Huskers as both a split end and a punter, Tim Smith was a standout for Coach Tom Osborne's Cornhuskers on the field and in the classroom. A first-team All-Big Eight selection as a senior in 1979 after earning second-team all-conference honors as a junior in 1978, Smith was a three-time academic All-Big Eight honoree. He also became the 10th Husker football player to claim a prestigious NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship in 1980.
After serving as a team captain and winning NU's Guy Chamberlin Trophy in 1979, Smith was drafted as a wide receiver by the Houston Oilers in the third round of the 1980 NFL Draft. He went on to a seven-year NFL career with the Oilers from 1980 through 1986.
A three-year letterman (1977, 1979, 1979), Smith finished his NU career with 72 catches for 1,089 yards and three touchdowns. He also punted 135 times for 5,413 yards, for an average of 40.10 yards per punt, and he never had a punt blocked in his NU career.
At the conclusion of his career, Smith ranked third on NU's receiving yardage list, trailing only Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Rodgers (1970-72) and Guy Ingles (1968-70), while also ranking fourth in career receptions, trailing Rodgers, Ingles and Jeff Kinney. Smith also became just the third Nebraska punter in history to average 40 yards per punt in his career.
In 1979, Smith hauled in 30 catches for 477 yards and one touchdown, while adding one reception for 10 yards in Nebraska's Cotton Bowl appearance against Houston. Smith led the Big Eight in both receptions and receiving yards as a senior. He scored his lone touchdown on the year with a 42-yard catch from Tim Hager in NU's 36-0 shutout of Oklahoma State in Stillwater on Oct. 20. Smith added his longest catch of the season with a 47-yarder against Penn State. He also hauled in a season-high six receptions in NU's 42-17 win over the Nittany Lions at Memorial Stadium.
Smith punted 41 times for 1,623 yards for a 39.6 regular-season average, before booming 10 punts for 406 yards (40.6 ypp) including a 53-yarder against the Cougars in the Cotton Bowl. He helped the Huskers ranked third in the league in net punting on the year.
1978 (Junior)
Smith was one of Nebraska's top receiving threats with 19 catches for 241 yards and one touchdown during the regular season as a junior. He added three catches for 62 yards and a touchdown in the Huskers' Orange Bowl loss to Oklahoma. Smith's touchdown came on a 21-yard strike from Tom Sorley for the opening score of the game to give NU a 7-0 lead less than seven minutes into the contest. His lone touchdown catch in the regular season came on a 17-yarder from Sorley in a win over Kansas.
A second-team All-Big Eight selection by the UPI as a junior, Smith also punted two times for 75 yards (37.5 ypp) against the Sooners in the Orange Bowl. During the regular season, he punted 45 times for 1,777 yards (39.5 yards per punt).
1977 (Sophomore)
In his first season as a starter, Smith made an instant impact by hauling in 23 catches for 371 yards and a touchdown during the regular season. He added a huge day with four catches for 78 yards and a touchdown to help the Huskers rally for a 21-17 win over North Carolina in the Liberty Bowl.
Smith's touchdown provided the Huskers with the winning score on a 34-yard pass from Randy Garcia with 3:16 left in the game to help NU come back from a 17-7 fourth quarter deficit. Smith also punted three times for 111 yards for a 37-yard average in the Liberty Bowl.
During the regular season, Smith boomed 49 punts for 2,013 yards for a 41.1 yard per punt average. His averaged ranked second in the Big Eight in 1977, while he also ranked fifth in the conference in receiving yardage and seventh in receptions.
1975-76
Smith redshirted in his second season at Nebraska in 1976 after starring on the Cornhusker Freshman Team in 1975.
Before Nebraska
Smith earned All-America honors at St. Augustine High School for Coach Larry Shepard.
Personal
The son of David and Dorothy Smith, Tim was born on March 20, 1957. He was a business administration major at Nebraska and was a three-time academic All-Big Eight selection.
Smith's Career Statistics
Receiving
Year
Games
No.
Yds.
Y/R
Y/G
TDs
1975
Freshman Team
1976
Redshirted
1977
11
23
371
16.1
33.7
1
1978
11
19
241
12.7
21.9
1
1979
11
30
477
15.9
43.4
1
Totals
33
72
1,089
15.8
33.0
3
1977 Liberty Bowl vs. North Carolina: Receiving, 4-78-1 TD (game-winning score); Punting, 3-111-37.0 avg.
1979 Orange Bowl vs. Oklahoma: Receiving, 3-62-1 TD; Punting, 2-75-37.5 avg.
1980 Cotton Bowl vs. Houston: Receiving, 1-10-0 TD; Punting, 10-406-40.6 avg.
Punting
Year
Games
No.
Yds.
YPP
BLK
1975
Freshman Team
1976
Redshirted
1977
11
49
2,013
41.1
0
1978
11
45
1,777
39.5
0
1979
11
41
1,623
39.6
0
Totals
33
135
5,413
40.1
0