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Spend enough time with Gophers’ defensive tackle O.J. Smith and you’ll probably find him in the kitchen with his roommate, offensive lineman Ben Davis. The duo follows one simple trick to cook the best ribs in Dinkytown.
“Get you whatever seasonings you want and just add either Coke or Dr. Pepper,” Smith said. “It makes the bone come off, so it’s more tender.”
Once the seasoning is applied, the flavor of the coke will make the ribs tender and cause them to fall off the bone. Smith didn’t learn this by watching Food Network. It’s a trick he picked up from Ben Davis and his cousin. From time-to-time, the 6-foot-2, 320-pound defensive tackle, takes these cooking tips to Instagram. Whether it’s gumbo, jambalaya or ribs, Smith, a Louisiana native, is trying his hand at a variety of different recipes.
“I can be [the team chef],” Smith joked.
He not only brings culinary talent to Dinkytown, but an impressive football background. Smith spent his first three years of college at Alabama, the top program in college football. A four-star recruit out of high school, Smith committed to Alabama over offers from Mississippi State and Memphis, among others. He was an Under Armour All-American and started the game at defensive tackle after injuries piled up.
“Crazy story…I wasn’t even on the roster,” Smith said. “I subbed in for a guy that was kind of hurt and I ended up starting the game. All of the guys who were ranked higher than me, I ended up starting over them.”
After spending three years at Alabama, Smith was lost in the shuffle of a depth chart filled with top talent. He chose to transfer in hopes of gaining more playing time at another school. Smith took a visit to Minnesota in July of 2017 to learn about head coach P.J. Fleck’s program and culture. He was set to visit Kansas State, but Fleck and the coaching staff changed his plans. Smith officially transferred to Minnesota just two days later.
“Wherever [Fleck goes], I go. When I first got here, I fell in love with this place,” Smith said. “The new complex and just the culture here. Coach Fleck made me more comfortable when I talked to him…his energy definitely makes him unique.”
Initially, P.J. Fleck liked the idea of bringing in a player who not only had talent, but past experience in a different college football culture.
“A lot of players on our team, we’re the only program they’ve seen, we’re the only culture they’ve seen or it’s the second culture they’ve seen,” Fleck said this spring. “But when you bring in people from the outside at times, I like that because there’s times they have a different perspective.”
Smith has brought this perspective to the Gophers’ locker room. Spending time around Alabama head coach Nick Saban has allowed him to experience a championship culture. Now, P.J. Fleck said Smith is learning how to lead a group of young players at Minnesota.
“I think [O.J. has] been shown that maybe he thought he had to lead, but maybe he didn’t think he had to lead this much and I think that’s been good for him. It’s because he’s watched guys really lead him and he’s like, ‘wait a minute, I’m supposed to be leading you’ and I think that only makes you better,” Fleck said.
“Competition is there to make you better and in the face of competition, you do two things. You either stare it right in the face and attack it, or you turn away from it…he’s stared it right in the face and attacked it. Not only the competition in terms of a nose guard position, but in leadership.”
MORE: http://www.1500espn.com/gophers-2/2018/09/defensive-tackle-o-j-smith-brings-unique-perspective-gophers/
“Get you whatever seasonings you want and just add either Coke or Dr. Pepper,” Smith said. “It makes the bone come off, so it’s more tender.”
Once the seasoning is applied, the flavor of the coke will make the ribs tender and cause them to fall off the bone. Smith didn’t learn this by watching Food Network. It’s a trick he picked up from Ben Davis and his cousin. From time-to-time, the 6-foot-2, 320-pound defensive tackle, takes these cooking tips to Instagram. Whether it’s gumbo, jambalaya or ribs, Smith, a Louisiana native, is trying his hand at a variety of different recipes.
“I can be [the team chef],” Smith joked.
He not only brings culinary talent to Dinkytown, but an impressive football background. Smith spent his first three years of college at Alabama, the top program in college football. A four-star recruit out of high school, Smith committed to Alabama over offers from Mississippi State and Memphis, among others. He was an Under Armour All-American and started the game at defensive tackle after injuries piled up.
“Crazy story…I wasn’t even on the roster,” Smith said. “I subbed in for a guy that was kind of hurt and I ended up starting the game. All of the guys who were ranked higher than me, I ended up starting over them.”
After spending three years at Alabama, Smith was lost in the shuffle of a depth chart filled with top talent. He chose to transfer in hopes of gaining more playing time at another school. Smith took a visit to Minnesota in July of 2017 to learn about head coach P.J. Fleck’s program and culture. He was set to visit Kansas State, but Fleck and the coaching staff changed his plans. Smith officially transferred to Minnesota just two days later.
“Wherever [Fleck goes], I go. When I first got here, I fell in love with this place,” Smith said. “The new complex and just the culture here. Coach Fleck made me more comfortable when I talked to him…his energy definitely makes him unique.”
Initially, P.J. Fleck liked the idea of bringing in a player who not only had talent, but past experience in a different college football culture.
“A lot of players on our team, we’re the only program they’ve seen, we’re the only culture they’ve seen or it’s the second culture they’ve seen,” Fleck said this spring. “But when you bring in people from the outside at times, I like that because there’s times they have a different perspective.”
Smith has brought this perspective to the Gophers’ locker room. Spending time around Alabama head coach Nick Saban has allowed him to experience a championship culture. Now, P.J. Fleck said Smith is learning how to lead a group of young players at Minnesota.
“I think [O.J. has] been shown that maybe he thought he had to lead, but maybe he didn’t think he had to lead this much and I think that’s been good for him. It’s because he’s watched guys really lead him and he’s like, ‘wait a minute, I’m supposed to be leading you’ and I think that only makes you better,” Fleck said.
“Competition is there to make you better and in the face of competition, you do two things. You either stare it right in the face and attack it, or you turn away from it…he’s stared it right in the face and attacked it. Not only the competition in terms of a nose guard position, but in leadership.”
MORE: http://www.1500espn.com/gophers-2/2018/09/defensive-tackle-o-j-smith-brings-unique-perspective-gophers/