HOLDOUTS : It’s Back to School for Emmitt Smith

Emmitt Smith, maintaining that he will not accept the Dallas Cowboys’ $3.2-million offer, instead will enroll today at the University of Florida as a 15-hour-a-week student, according to a published report.

“This is no ploy. This is for real,” Smith said in today’s Dallas Times Herald. Smith added that he is returning to Gainesville to enroll for the fall semester.

Smith was drafted 17th overall and was the second running back selected in the April NFL draft. He said if he doesn’t sign he will work toward his degree.

“And if I didn’t play a down this year with the Cowboys, I’d go back to school (in the spring), train, and go back into the draft next year,” said Smith, who needs 42 credit hours for a degree in public recreation.

“I’m hoping that doesn’t happen because I’d love to play football for the Cowboys,” Smith said. “But that’s a possibility that could very well happen.”

The Cowboys have reportedly offered Smith a $1-million signing bonus. His first-year salary would be $440,000.

Smith’s agents are believed to have come down from their demand of $800,000 per year over three years.