The Falcons drafted Ito Smith out of Southern Miss with the No. 126 pick in the 2018 draft. His real name isn’t Ito, though. It’s Romarius.
New Falcons RB Ito Smith’s nickname came from the judge who presided over the O.J. Simpson trial
Now I feel old.
Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports
Jeanna Kelley has been covering the Falcons for The Falcoholic since 2011 and the NFL for SB Nation since 2015.
Wait, Romarius? How do you get the nickname Ito out of Romarius?
Oh. This explains it.
If Kerryon Johnson saying he wishes he’d been alive to see Barry Sanders play didn’t make you feel old, maybe this will. I was 19 years old when the O.J. trial was going on. That was 22 years ago. The players being drafted this weekend were literally infants during my early adulthood. This doesn’t seem possible, but numbers don’t lie.
Does Ito Smith still look like Judge Lance Ito? Let’s see.
Southern Miss
Photo by Robert Galbraith-Pool/Getty Images
There is a resemblance!
Smith joins a talented backfield in Atlanta, with Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman. Like Freeman and Coleman, Smith is well-rounded as a rusher and a receiver, making him a nice complement to the Falcons’ ground game. He finished his senior season with 1,415 rushing yards and and 13 touchdowns. He also hauled in 40 receptions for 396 yards and two scores.
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