Smith Waits As Chargers Go Forward
Billy Ray Smith has been a Charger through bad times and sad times. He has been through times of hope and times of hopelessness. He has seen fans frenzied with faith and he has seen fans cold with apathy.
He came to the Chargers as their No. 1 choice in the 1983 draft after a stellar career at Arkansas.
That team was oh-so-close to greatness. That was what everyone believed. Dan Fouts and Kellen Winslow and Doug Wilkerson and Chuck Muncie and Charlie Joiner, all Pro Bowlers, were part of that team. Notably, all were offensive players.
Billy Ray was a linebacker. Perhaps he could be the missing link to help bring defense to Mission Valley. Perhaps Air Coryell would finally land in the Super Bowl.
Perhaps not.
Those Chargers, in truth, were on the brink of mediocrity rather than greatness.
No one man could stop this slide, not even a man with the intensity, intelligence and intuition of Mr. Billy Ray Smith.
The record went into a slide and so did interest. The faithful stayed through dismal 1983 and 1984 seasons, supporting 6-10 and 7-9 teams with eight sellouts each year. The Chargers have sold out a total of 13 games the last seven years, always the Raiders and occasionally Denver.
These have not been the best of years . . . Billy Ray Smith’s nine years.
Just once, he hoped to run onto the field in January . . . for a playoff game.
Now, in November of 1992, interest is picking up. The Chargers have won five of their last six games. A favorable schedule lies ahead. A playoff appearance, the first since 1982, is a very real possibility.
Unfortunately for Smith, he has not run onto the field at all this year.
He is on injured reserve with a torn hamstring and tendon. He has been there all year. He goes to work every day for treatment. He sits through meetings. His teammates go to practice and he works on rehabilitation.
Billy Ray Smith has one day off each week.
Sunday.
Now a pro football player wants Sundays off about as much as Santa Claus wants December off. Smith works all year to have fun on Sundays and Sundays have become a whole lot more fun hereabouts of late.
“Such good things are happening to this team,” he said after Thursday’s meetings, “that I’m personally surprised you came over here to talk to me. So many great things are happening.”
Folks care about Billy Ray Smith. Guys tend to disappear when they are on injured reserve, but guys like Billy Ray are not forgotten. You wonder how they are doing and what they are feeling.
Frustrated, yes.
Optimistic, yes.
Upbeat, yes.
Disappointed, yes.
“As long as I can rehab,” he said, “I have a chance to play. Maybe I can sneak in on the tail end. We have six games left. This is taking longer than I hoped, but . . .”
He was bright at times, when talking about his teammates and especially when he was talking about his wife Kimberly or his infant daughter Savannah. And he could be resigned at time, when talking of the succession of injuries which have plagued him since a torn calf muscle in 1988.
“When I first did the calf,” he said, “I think I’d missed one game since the sixth grade.”
In the back of his mind, he conceded, there is the haunting fear that maybe, just maybe, he might not play again.
“I’ve been fortunate,” he said, “just to be in the NFL nine or 10 years. The average is maybe 3 1/2 years for linebackers. I feel fortunate I’ve been here that long, but this injury certainly has been frustrating.”
A season like this is a mixed bag for him. He is delighted that things are finally on the upswing for his team, but understandably frustrated at not being more a part of it.
Who wants to watch a party?
That is what Billy Ray Smith has been. A spectator. He goes to home game and watches road games on television. He wants to be coming into living rooms, not sitting in one.
“It’s fun to watch my teammates play,” he said, “but it’s murder just sitting around.”
Maybe the injury will come around and maybe the Chargers for the first time in forever will be playing in January.
“I could work into that,” Smith said, brightening. “That’s what everybody plays for. That’s the pinnacle of what everybody works for. Being in the playoffs.”
That would be like dessert to the Chargers and their fans. It has been so long since they have experienced such a taste sensation. They have been on the most boring of diets for so long.
Right now, however, Billy Ray Smith would like to sink his teeth into the main course of the 1992 menu.
