WEST LAFAYETTE — Purdue wide receiver Leland Smith was living with six people inside of a crowded two-bedroom apartment in Fullerton, California, a 23-mile drive from the busy freeways of Orange County to Los Angeles.
Smith gambled on himself when he left his home state of Texas in 2023 after he’d been a walk-on at TCU to join Fullerton College.
“I didn’t feel like it was a good fit for me,” Smith said of his experience at TCU, where his mother Yolanda attended and played college basketball.
Instead of playing for the Horned Frogs, Smith opted for the more adverse route: playing junior college football, where there aren’t scholarships for athletes and playing time isn’t guaranteed.
His epiphany came while reading the Bible.
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“We were still in spring ball at TCU, I had my own Bible study and the verse I read was John 13:7: ‘And though you may not understand right now, later you will,'” Smith said. “I understood I wasn’t happy where I was at, so I reached out to one of my old 7-on-7 coaches and told him I didn’t feel I was progressing, growing or reaching my full potential here.”.
Smith later received a phone call that would chart his course to California.
“I don’t really believe in coincidence,” Smith said. “When God gives you a sign and gives you an opportunity you don’t turn your back on it.”
A dream and an ‘All-American’ gamble
Smith accepted the risks he was taking on at Fullerton College, where the class of 2023 featured nearly 80 athletes who were signed to Power 5 schools, according to 247 Sports.
To support himself, Smith worked four jobs including part-time gigs as a youth referee, a security guard and as a model. He also was afforded an opportunity to experience a small nibble of Hollywood as one of those jobs turned out to be a small but vital acting gig for the CW hit series “All-American.”
Smith can be seen scoring a touchdown during Season 6, Episode 9. He attended rehearsals at Weingart Stadium on the campus of East Los Angeles College after learning of the opportunity from his teammate, offensive lineman George Duah.
“He reached out on my behalf because he knew I was going to play Division I football,” Smith said. “He reached out to them and I was in a few episodes.”
Inside the life and grind of a junior college athlete
While Smith got a small taste of acting, his life off the set wasn’t glamorous.
His daily diet consisted of cheese and chicken quesadillas, nachos or tacos. His Sam’s Club shopping list featured three bags of rotisserie chicken, two bags of tortillas and three bags of shredded cheese.
“For a week and a half to two weeks that was what I would eat every day,” Smith said.
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He didn’t have parents or family members around to help him pay for food, rent, bills, books and tuition.
Smith woke up at 6:30 each morning and prepared by studying the Bible. Afterward, he attended morning lifts and classes, then practiced in the afternoon before he was off to work whatever job was in his schedule. Smith attended church three days per week as well.
“The biggest lesson I learned through strengthening my faith in Christ was I had to determine how much I loved the sport,” Smith said. “Through reading the bible, my definition of love is sacrifice and what you’re willing to sacrifice.”
Preliminary struggles fueled Leland Smith’s rise
He also learned playing junior college football in California was challenging. Elite players have come and gone through the system, such as Pro Football Hall of Famers O.J. Simpson (City College of San Francisco) and Warren Moon (West Los Angeles).
Smith learned his reputation meant nothing. He was benched for his performance during the first half of his first game against Santa Barbara City College. It was the first time Smith had been benched in his career.
“I came out as the TCU bounce back and well known and all of that,” Smith said. “I had to go and earn it all back. And it really just showed me that was a humbling experience. It was an experience that I didn’t want at the time but I knew that I needed that to get to where I am now.”
He continued: “I had these high hopes and ambitions and dreams of how it would be. How easy it would be to go JUCO, go crazy and get out. But then I had to humble myself and learn the hard way that I was going to have to put more work in and I was able to do that. I had coaches that believed in me and coaches that pushed me to become the best version of myself.”
Smith overcame the early adversity on the field. The 6-foot-5 Houston native totaled 26 receptions for 655 yards and nine touchdowns while guiding the Hornets to a Southern California Football Association Conference title.
“I was willing to sacrifice my time and put it into the gym rather than playing video games to get on the field,” Smith said. “I knew what it is I wanted and I knew how much love I had for the sport.”
Finding brotherhood and overcoming challenges in West Lafayette
Smith has found a home at Purdue as a sophomore and is tied for the team lead with two touchdown catches on five receptions for 67 yards.
His eventual breakout season at Fullerton College led to offers from 24 schools, including Mississippi State, Miami, Oregon State and Washington State. But Purdue was the first Power 4 program to make an offer. He felt an immediate connection with wide receivers coach Cory Patterson and became enamored with the program’s culture.
“I wanted to go to a program where I felt the love was real and not just because somebody else was showing love,” Smith said. “I chose Purdue after taking my visit here and it was the last school I visited. I really liked the brotherhood, I fell in love with the people that were here, the family and the vision we had for this program.”
Purdue is idle this week and its record sits at 1-6 after six consecutive losses to Notre Dame, Oregon State, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Illinois and Oregon.
But Smith sees a bigger plan ahead when the Boilermakers return to the field to host Northwestern on Nov. 2 at noon.
“Things are difficult right now but nothing worth having comes easy and I recognize we are still a great team putting in work every day,” Smith said. “We fight our own challenges, our own battles and we will grow stronger from it. There’s no doubt or worry that goes through our minds as we continue to go through the season and trust the process.”
Ethan Hanson is the sports reporter for the Journal & Courier in Lafayette. He can be reached at ehanson@jconline.com, on Twitter at EthanAHanson and Instagram at ethan_a_hanson.
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Purdue football WR Leland Smith’s journey has its own Hollywood story
