West Charlotte football: Quarterback KD Smith just wants ‘to have an impact’ for Lions
KD Smith made quite an impression on West Charlotte High coach Sam Greiner last season.
Smith started as a defensive back, as a 14-year-old freshman, for what ultimately became a third-round N.C. 3A playoff team. But late in the season, Greiner decided to move him to quarterback after the Lions were shut out by Hough.
What happened after that? West Charlotte’s points-per-game average jumped from 18.5 to 30.2 points per game — and the Lions found their stride.
So even though Smith has a college offer from Kentucky, and interest from other Power 5 schools, to play defense, he told Greiner he wanted to play quarterback full-time this season, because he felt his team needed it.
“He said, ‘Coach, I’m not going to play quarterback in college but I can lead this team,’” Smith told Greiner. “He said, ‘If that’s what we need to do to win, let’s do it.’”
Greiner said he has complete faith in his sophomore, in a season where the coach believes West Charlotte can challenge for its first state championship berth in 17 years.
“It’s not just about throwing the ball,” Greiner said. “It is about when guys in the huddle trust him (Smith) to make the right decisions out there on the field. He really checks all the boxes that needed to be checked. That is the deciding factor, and when he starts throwing the football, it’s really just a bonus.”
Smith said he was extremely excited about the opportunity to be the full-time quarterback, but said his biggest goal is to win.
“No matter where I was out there on the field,” he said, “if I was needed on offense or defense, I just really want to win. It wasn’t a surprise to me because I trust my talent. Wherever I am at, I want to have an impact.”
Smith said there’s a lot he can do to improve during the next three seasons to have an even bigger impact on the field.
“No one can be perfect at anything,” Smith said. “You can always make yourself better. Whatever that means, whether in the weight room and getting stronger or out on the field. You can always practice and get better.”
Greiner thinks that Smith is one of the strongest pound-for-pound players on the roster.
“He benches over 250 (pounds) and squats right around 315 deep,” Greiner said. “He power cleans very well. He is a very durable guy who I think can sustain running the football a lot more now. We are deep, so we will be able to play him on defense as well. If he is able to play both sides of the ball, then why not do it?”
After last season’s 22-19 playoff loss to Kings Mountain, Smith is one of 14 returning starters, all of whom want to go even farther this season.
“We’ve got a lot of better players,” Smith said. “We are confident that we can win a state championship. We aren’t going to worry about anyone but ourselves. The goal is every week to just go in and win the game, and that is what we will do.”
This story was originally published August 10, 2023 at 7:30 AM.
