THE NFL DRAFT : Raiders Put It on Line With Arizona’s Smith

Eschewing the orthodoxy that made recent drafts predictable--if productive--Al Davis used the top Raider pick Sunday for Anthony Smith, a dark-horse defensive end from Arizona.

If Smith wasn’t a complete unknown, like Bob Buczkowski in 1986, he was generally ranked below Baylor linebacker James Francis, Michigan State linebacker Percy Snow, West Virginia defensive end Renaldo Turnbull, Houston linebacker Lamar Lathon, Fresno State cornerback J.D. Williams and Florida halfback Emmitt Smith--who went in that order after the Raider pick.

Will Smith be a steal in the Howie Long-Sean Jones tradition, or a bust like Buczkowski?

“From the beginning, we studied him (Smith),” said Coach Art Shell. “He’s a guy, if you watch film, he catches your eye. One thing he’s shown, he’s very explosive off the ball.

“We were aware he was rated one of the top pass-rushers in college football. We were just hoping a guy of his caliber would slip down to our pick. We were very fortunate.”

For what it’s worth, Smith was generally considered just under the top group of ends.

Acknowledged as a major physical talent--he was a No. 1 pick on several late mock drafts--he comes with several question marks.

He had a troubled childhood, left the University of Alabama in a dispute with a coach after his junior year and underwent an arthroscopic probe of his right knee late last season that resulted in his being sent home from the Senior Bowl.

Smith was born in Elizabeth City, N.C., orphaned at 3, and spent his early years in New York City, where he has acknowledged heavy drug use including LSD, cocaine and heroin, and forays into street crime. He once told The Arizona Republic he had been arrested “14 or 15 times.”

“I took stuff, we used to call ‘stars,’ ” Smith told The Times’ Steve Springer last November. “I didn’t even know what they were. . . . All kinds of pills, you name it.

“I remember one time taking uppers and downers, and drinking behind that. Damn, I took some stuff, huh?”

Smith told of spending his 14th birthday taking heroin with a brother. Smith wound up in a hospital and the brother died. “That really, really scared me,” Smith told Springer.

Smith said he eventually moved back to Elizabeth City, was raised by a brother whom he refers to as his father, and went into a rehabilitation program.

However, Smith refused to discuss his past Sunday, other than in glowing terms.

“I grew up in Elizabeth City, N.C., a place where good people live,” Smith said on a conference call.

“I grew up with a lot of morals and ethics in my life. And my parents were real tough on me, from an early age, to grow up the way I was supposed to.”

And reports of childhood trouble?

“Well, sir, I haven’t any comment on that,” Smith said. “I want to talk further with the team about that. I’ll have something to say when I get out there about that.

“I can say that after the team and I get these misconceptions taken care of, I think they’ll be proud of me.”

Smith played football for the first time as a high school senior in Elizabeth City, became a Parade Magazine All-American, played at Alabama for three years and then left school. In his one year at Arizona, he was All-Pacific 10.

“He was a model citizen when he was here,” said Arizona publicist Butch Henry from Tucson. “He made numerous, numerous appearances with grade school youngsters and he was sensational in his presentation.”

An effusive Smith said Sunday he was surprised to go on the first round, and, of course, delighted to be a Raider.

“The team fits my personality,” Smith said. “It fits my style of play. I’m like a free spirit . . . kind of a hard-core, hell-bent-for-leather attitude towards play. Willing to scratch and fight. And not respecting anybody in front of me.”

Shell says the team worked Smith out in recent weeks, and found the knee sound.

And Smith’s youth? “Everybody has problems,” Shell said. “Those were problems he’s overcome. We research the background of each player, and we came away feeling good about it.”

The Raiders, with their No. 2 pick, finally got a linebacker: Aaron Wallace, a 6-3, 235-pounder from Texas A&M; who slipped after having been considered first-round material after his junior year.

He missed several games last season with a turf toe injury. He didn’t play in the Senior Bowl because of a hamstring pull, and ran only a 4.66 40-yard dash at the scouting combine in Indianapolis, still slowed by the injury, he said.

However, he says he has run 4.47 healthy. He had two sacks in the Hula Bowl all-star game.

“Excellent quickness,” Shell said. “He’ll be after the passer.”

Davis’ record remains intact. He has never drafted a linebacker on the first round.

Raider Notes

The fourth-round pick was Torin Dorn, a cornerback from North Carolina. . . . Is the Lyle Alzado comeback at age 41, after being retired five years, for real? “Lyle would like to come back and try to be a player,” Art Shell said. “He’s going through a workout process to see if he can generate the kind of spirit he had before, the kind of conditioning he had before. If he can, we’ll sit down and talk about it. I’m not thinking about that. I’m thinking about the draft and the players on our football team.” In other words, a polite don’t-bet-on-it.