Enoch Smith Jr. finds his inspiration in younger brother, Trey
STILLWATER — Enoch Smith Jr. walked into the middle-school cafeteria one day, same as any other day. But this time, the scene in the little lunch room on the south side of Chicago struck him differently.
At one table was his younger brother, Trevon — who prefers to be called Trey — sitting with his classmates. Enoch’s friends were at another table.
Nothing unusual, except for the way Enoch’s brain was suddenly processing what he saw, even though he’d seen it dozens of times before.
Trey, who is autistic, and his friends from the special-education class were segregated to their own area, while the “normal” students filled the rest of the cafeteria.
Enoch uses air quotes when he talks about “normal people” and those with “special needs” because he knows that’s how the groups have become identified in societal lexicon. But he doesn’t necessarily agree with the distinction.
“I saw my brother sitting there, and I just went over and sat down with
them,” Enoch said. “I listened to them and I saw their smiles. They were in
shock, because a ‘normal’ person came and interacted with them.
“It brought other people to start sitting with them and understanding them and not having them viewed as outcasts.”
It wasn’t the first time Enoch stood by his brother against the special-needs stereotypes, but it might’ve been the most significant. When he was younger, Enoch would get angry in those situations, but as he grew up, he began to realize that some of the “normal” ones just didn’t understand people like Trey.
Enoch spent only two seasons playing defensive tackle for the Oklahoma State football team, a run that will end on New Year’s Eve when the Cowboys face Missouri in the Liberty Bowl at 2:45 p.m. in Memphis, Tennessee.
Listed at 6-foot-2 and 295 pounds, Enoch might get a chance to play professionally, but it’s not a guarantee. Whenever his last game comes, Enoch knows what’s next.
“My plan is to open up my own foundation for people with special needs and autism to provide them with financial literacy, teach them how to interact with people on a daily basis, and also look into job opportunities after they finish their high school program,” said Enoch, who turns 23 on Christmas Day.
“I’m an advocate of autism awareness, or any disability. The people who we classify as having a ‘disability,’ or having ‘special needs,’ they show us how to love, and love unconditionally. We’re the ones who are ‘normal,’ but certain people look down on ‘special-needs people’ when they’re the ones showing us how we should be living.”
Enoch is a fireball of emotion, and Trey is the spark. Enoch’s emotion comes out as energy and excitement on the football field, passion and compassion off it.
Enoch’s time at OSU has been brief, but meaningful.
The Smiths are a football family. Not just Enoch Jr., and his father, who had a standout college career at what was then known as Southwest Missouri State before playing in the Arena Football League.
Trey loves football, too, even though he can’t play. Still, it was a moment with his brother on the field at Boone Pickens Stadium that Enoch Jr. will cherish long after his football career is finished.
Before playing West Virginia on senior day, Enoch Jr. was filling out the usual personal information sheet, and could list only two people whose names would be announced when he ran onto the field, and he had to make a phone call.
“Dad, don’t feel weird if they don’t call your name,” Enoch Jr. told his father.
When Enoch Jr. jogged out to midfield, Trey’s name boomed out over the stadium speakers.
“I could do nothing but smile,” said Enoch Sr., who is a minister in Chicago, where he also trains young athletes in football and life skills through his organization, Knowing Your Worth. “Enoch having the opportunity during one of the best moments of his life and pay tribute to his little brother — Enoch was excited, he was emotional. It was a blessed moment that we’ll never forget.”
Enoch Jr. heard the announcement, saw his family waiting for him, and broke into tears.
Trey might’ve heard his name called out to the entire stadium, or he might’ve been too preoccupied trying to get Pistol Pete’s attention.
Because as much as Trey loves watching his brother play football, he loves mascots even more.
Enoch Jr. began his career at Michigan State and Trey loved Sparty. But when Enoch Jr. landed at OSU, Trey was hesitant.
“No, no, we’re Sparty,” he told Enoch Sr.
But Trey finally came around.
“Now, when we come down to Oklahoma State, he’s all about Pistol Pete,” Enoch Sr. said. “He’s looking for him, trying to take pictures with him.”
Everything about football taps into a special place in Trey’s mind — literally.
Trey falls in the middle of the autism spectrum. His verbal skills were slow to develop, and now, at age 20, he still mostly speaks in broken sentences. He often remains introverted in public.
“When we’re at a game, he’s dancing, and he’s talking more. When he sees Pistol Pete, he’s running together seven-to-eight-word sentences,” said his mother, Talisha Smith. “It brings out a different side of Trey. To see it, you’d think you’re looking at two different young men.
“He’s Enoch’s biggest fan.”
For Enoch, though, that role is reversed.
“Trey has always been my biggest inspiration. He’s my why. Why I play football, why I do other certain things,” Enoch Jr. said. “He’s always been in my corner, even though he’s gone through everything he’s had to go through since he was young.
“He’s the person I look up to, even though he’s my little brother.”