Spencer Brown, Elerson Smith Gear Up for Saturday's Senior Bowl
1/29/2021 4:42:00 PM | Football
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – Early in fall camp during the 2019 football season, with the sun glaring high on the UNI practice field and the humidity rising to excruciating levels, Spencer Brown and Elerson Smith were jawing.
Brown, a 6-9 right tackle against Smith, a 6-7 defensive end. The trash talk arose after pass protection drills late in the practice. The two were in each other's faces, Smith being one of the few players that can even approach Brown near eye level. Smith accused Brown of holding while Brown refused to back down.
The talk never rose to animosity, but playful banter back-and-forth between the two. It lasted just seconds before they walked to their own sidelines. Brown grabbed a bottle of water and in-between gulps, out of breath, he whispered, just barely audibly, "Damn, he is good." Smith on the other sideline, said the same thing.
Seventeen months and a global pandemic later, Smith and Brown spent the week in Mobile, Alabama at Senior Bowl practice ahead of Saturday's game. Despite wearing pads for the first time in over a year, the two still had the opportunity to face each other in practice. This time, however, NFL coaches and scouts from every team and a national audience on ESPNU and the NFL Network were watching.
The Senior Bowl holds extra importance this year with the changes in the combine. It will be one of the only chances for NFL personnel to interact one-on-one with players.
The national exposure was well received. ESPN commentators mentioned Smith's transformation and Brown received a lot of buzz for his size and ability to move.
"One thing that has been pretty impressive so far is these Northern Iowa guys, Elerson Smith and Spencer Brown," ESPN analyst Quint Kessenich said during Thursday's broadcast. "Even though they are from a smaller school, they have more than held their own so far this week."
The practices have given the UNI players the chance to show their chops against some of the best in the country, but after facing each other nearly every practice for years, it isn't much of a step up for Brown and Smith.
"Elerson has helped me develop to the player you see today," Brown said. "He was always a challenge every single day. Going against him for four or five years prepared me extremely well for not only this week but in my next steps towards the NFL."
Twenty-one schools have more than one player at the senior bowl, but only three non-Power Five teams, UNI, UAB and Western Michigan, have multiple players participating. Sixteen Power-Five schools did not send a single representative to the game and 11 Power-five schools sent just one player to the game.
The Senior Bowl is scheduled for 1:30 p.m., Saturday on the NFL Network. Both players are on the National Team squad.
Brown, a 6-9 right tackle against Smith, a 6-7 defensive end. The trash talk arose after pass protection drills late in the practice. The two were in each other's faces, Smith being one of the few players that can even approach Brown near eye level. Smith accused Brown of holding while Brown refused to back down.
The talk never rose to animosity, but playful banter back-and-forth between the two. It lasted just seconds before they walked to their own sidelines. Brown grabbed a bottle of water and in-between gulps, out of breath, he whispered, just barely audibly, "Damn, he is good." Smith on the other sideline, said the same thing.
Seventeen months and a global pandemic later, Smith and Brown spent the week in Mobile, Alabama at Senior Bowl practice ahead of Saturday's game. Despite wearing pads for the first time in over a year, the two still had the opportunity to face each other in practice. This time, however, NFL coaches and scouts from every team and a national audience on ESPNU and the NFL Network were watching.
The Senior Bowl holds extra importance this year with the changes in the combine. It will be one of the only chances for NFL personnel to interact one-on-one with players.
The national exposure was well received. ESPN commentators mentioned Smith's transformation and Brown received a lot of buzz for his size and ability to move.
"One thing that has been pretty impressive so far is these Northern Iowa guys, Elerson Smith and Spencer Brown," ESPN analyst Quint Kessenich said during Thursday's broadcast. "Even though they are from a smaller school, they have more than held their own so far this week."
The practices have given the UNI players the chance to show their chops against some of the best in the country, but after facing each other nearly every practice for years, it isn't much of a step up for Brown and Smith.
"Elerson has helped me develop to the player you see today," Brown said. "He was always a challenge every single day. Going against him for four or five years prepared me extremely well for not only this week but in my next steps towards the NFL."
Twenty-one schools have more than one player at the senior bowl, but only three non-Power Five teams, UNI, UAB and Western Michigan, have multiple players participating. Sixteen Power-Five schools did not send a single representative to the game and 11 Power-five schools sent just one player to the game.
The Senior Bowl is scheduled for 1:30 p.m., Saturday on the NFL Network. Both players are on the National Team squad.
Players Mentioned
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