| Profile | |
|---|---|
| Position | Quarterback |
| Personal information | |
| Born | (2001-10-27)October 27, 2001 (age 24) Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. |
| Height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) |
| Weight | 219 lb (99 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Frenship (Wolfforth, Texas) |
| College | Texas Tech (2020–2022) Houston (2023–2024) |
| NFL draft | 2025: undrafted |
Donovan Lamont Smith (born October 27, 2001) is an Americanfootballquarterback. He playedcollege football for theHouston Cougars and theTexas Tech Red Raiders.
Smith originally attendedBishop Gorman High School inLas Vegas,Nevada, mainly playing as a wide receiver while also serving as the team's backup quarterback. Donovan would transfer toFrenship High School in theLubbock, Texas suburb ofWolfforth prior to the 2019–20 school year. Smith finished his senior season completing 212-of-328 passes for 3,114 yards with 26 touchdowns and 8 interceptions along with 489 rushing yards and 14 rushing touchdowns.[1] Smith finished his senior year with the 32nd-most passing yards in the state of Texas for the 2019 season.[2]
Smith was listed as a three-star recruit by247Sports.com coming out of high school. He committed to Texas Tech overNevada,San Diego State, andUtah State.[3]
| Year | GP | Passing | Rushing | Receiving | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Y/A | TD | Int | Rtg | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | Rec | Yds | Avg | TD | ||
| 2017 | 4 | 2 | 6 | .333 | 16 | 2.7 | 0 | 0 | 42.4 | 11 | 80 | 7.3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2018 | 12 | 3 | 8 | .375 | 83 | 10.4 | 1 | 0 | 116.1 | 9 | 13 | 1.4 | 2 | 49 | 806 | 16.4 | 8 |
| 2019 | 11 | 212 | 328 | .646 | 3,114 | 9.5 | 26 | 8 | 111.8 | 96 | 489 | 5.1 | 14 | 1 | 3 | 3.0 | 1 |
| Career | 27 | 217 | 342 | .635 | 3,213 | 9.4 | 27 | 8 | 110.7 | 116 | 582 | 5.0 | 17 | 50 | 809 | 16.2 | 9 |
Source:[1]
Smith suffered a shoulder injury prior to the2020 season, and did not appear in any games during the season. He had surgery on his shoulder and returned to practice the following spring.[4]
Smith entered the team's week nine game againstOklahoma in the second quarter after starterHenry Colombi was shaken up on a tackle.[5] Smith made his first collegiate start in the team's week 11 game againstIowa State, with original starterTyler Shough still recovering from a broken collarbone he suffered in week 4 and Colombi out due to an illness.[6] Smith finished the game 25-of-32 for 322 yards with three touchdowns and one interception as the Red Raiders won 41–38, becoming bowl eligible for the first time since2017.[7] For his performance, Smith was named the Big 12 Newcomer of the Week.[8] Following the game, interim head coachSonny Cumbie stated that Smith would remain the team's starting quarterback.[9] The Red Raiders were invited to theLiberty Bowl, playing againstMississippi State. Smith finished the game with 252 passing yards and a touchdown along with a rushing touchdown in the 34–7 win and was named the game's MVP.[10][11]
Entering into the2022 season, Smith was in a competition for the starting quarterback position againstTyler Shough andBehren Morton.[12] Shough was named the team's week one starter on August 21.[13] Shough started the game againstMurray State, but exited the game after the first quarter due to a possible injury and was replaced by Smith.[14] In Week 2, Smith started Texas Tech's game against no. 25Houston. The Red Raiders jumped out to a 17–3 halftime lead, but the Cougars stormed back in the second half due in part to three interceptions by Smith, including one that was returned 54 yards for a touchdown. Houston took a 20–17 lead with 0:37 left in regulation before Smith led the offense down field to tie the game 20–20 with a 47-yard field goal from Trey Wolff; the Red Raiders would win the game 33–30 in double overtime, with Smith scoring the game-winning touchdown on a 9-yard run.[15] Smith finished with a career-high 350 yards passing and three total touchdowns, two passing and one rushing. For his performance, Smith was named the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week.[16] Two weeks later, against no. 22Texas, Smith threw for 331 yards and two touchdowns along with 42 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown in the 37–34 overtime victory. For his performance against Texas, Smith was named the Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award National Player of the Week.[17] In the regular season finale againstOklahoma, Smith had both a rushing and receiving touchdown.[18] On December 5, it was announced that Smith would be entering theNCAA transfer portal.[19]
On December 21, 2022, Smith transferred toHouston.[20][21]
| Season | Games | Passing | Rushing | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Record | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Avg | TD | Int | Rtg | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | |
| Texas Tech Red Raiders | |||||||||||||||
| 2020 | Redshirt | ||||||||||||||
| 2021 | 11 | 4 | 2−2 | 86 | 140 | 61.4 | 1,182 | 8.4 | 7 | 2 | 146.0 | 57 | 154 | 2.7 | 3 |
| 2022 | 12 | 4 | 2−2 | 146 | 221 | 66.1 | 1,505 | 6.8 | 12 | 8 | 133.9 | 76 | 116 | 1.5 | 7 |
| Houston Cougars | |||||||||||||||
| 2023 | 12 | 12 | 4−8 | 256 | 397 | 64.5 | 2,801 | 7.1 | 22 | 13 | 135.5 | 138 | 428 | 3.1 | 6 |
| 2024 | 9 | 5 | 1−4 | 87 | 133 | 65.4 | 867 | 6.5 | 4 | 8 | 118.1 | 65 | 147 | 2.3 | 3 |
| Career | 44 | 25 | 9–16 | 574 | 889 | 64.6 | 6,354 | 7.1 | 45 | 31 | 134.3 | 336 | 845 | 2.5 | 19 |
Source:[22]
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 20-yard shuttle | Vertical jump | Broad jump | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 219 lb (99 kg) | 33 in (0.84 m) | 10+3⁄8 in (0.26 m) | 4.63 s | 4.32 s | 37.0 in (0.94 m) | 10 ft 2 in (3.10 m) | |||||
| All values fromPro Day[23][24] | ||||||||||||
On April 30, 2025, Smith received a rookie minicamp try out with theDallas Cowboys.[25]
Smith's father,DeAndre, was the running backs coach for Texas Tech from 2019 to 2021.[26] As of 2023, he is the running backs coach for theIndianapolis Colts in theNFL.[27]