Douglas’ junior linebacker leads the state in tackles
Cole Smalley (42) shows his excitement after a play during Douglas High football’s season opener against Argonaut. Smalley leads the state of Nevada in total tackles through six games.
Photo by Ron Harpin.
If you take just a few seconds to watch Cole Smalley play linebacker, you can see his instincts for the position. Smalley is just a junior for the Tigers football team and while his frame may be unassuming at the moment, those who are unaware of his power will get a quick wake-up call. Douglas’ leading tackler and standout linebacker is no stranger to the position given his family lineage. His older brother, Chris, now plays at the University of Nevada, Reno after earning a three-star prospect reputation at the position before graduating last spring. His late father, Rod, played in the NFL and had a remarkable career as a linebacker with the Bruins at UCLA. Cole has had a unique opportunity to learn from Chris while watching him play, but he will readily admit that his obsession with film study is a reason behind his impressive play. “I’ll watch film all day,” said Smalley. Prepping for another varsity season As a sophomore, Smalley played in eight games and recorded 64 tackles with three tackles for loss. Through six games this season (prior to Damonte Ranch), the 6-foot-3 linebacker had recorded 81 tackles while posting 11 tackles for loss, four sacks and an interception. His 81 tackles were enough to rank him in the top 50 nationwide, per MaxPreps, and lead the entire state of Nevada. Smalley’s instincts are second to none. On several occasions this year he has jumped the snap and tackled the quarterback before the opposing play caller even has time to hand off the ball. He sniffs out passing plays, too, but there’s more thrill for him in getting into the backfield and blowing up the play. “The guards eyes are straight down. They’re not looking for pressure or they will lean where they’re going, so I can blitz off of that,” said Smalley about what he’s looking for pre-snap. His coaches praise his standout traits, but also found some humor in Smalley’s innate ability to get after the football. Smalley chuckled and said a lot of his mentality is, “see the football, go get the football.” “If I don’t hit anyone on the play, it’s not that fun,” Smalley said. Playing in college is one of the main goals driving Smalley. His main priority through last offseason, much like his brother, was to put on muscle and get bigger. “I was just lifting and shoveling food into my mouth. I was fighting to get back to about 190 and I finally did it about two weeks before the season,” said Smalley. The junior said he was lifting twice a day for the entire summer while trying to consume 2,000 calories a meal after hitting the weight room. Smalley’s focus isn’t singular, though, with the Tigers sitting at 1-6. The junior captain wants to build team chemistry after a tough start to the year. “Being more of a team player. In practice, we are getting on each other a lot. So, just like fixing more of the team atmosphere is really what I’m after,” Smalley said.
(Cole Smalley (42) pulls down an Argonaut ballcarrier earlier this season. Smalley’s 81 total tackles through six games ranked him top-50 in the nation in tackles. / Ron Harpin)
Motivation Smalley says he has two sources of motivation – hard work and his father. “My dad, really,” said Smalley of his motivation. “My girlfriend and my family have been pushing me, but my dad is a pretty big one.” Smalley listens to his father’s playlist before kickoff and says he plans on wearing his dad’s jersey number for his senior season. Since he first started playing football in third grade, Smalley has been competing against older players. “Me being a natural defensive guy, it’s cool to see where I started at compared to now,” said Smalley. “I started out being the third string that everyone laughed at when I went in. It’s a pretty cool thing to be, not up at the top, but at that high of a place.” Smalley’s statistics show he’s one of the best football players in the state. A plus for Tiger fans: they’ll get another year of seeing Smalley.
