Many college football players face the fork in the road: keep pursuing the sport and turn pro or venture down a different avenue and join the work force.
Braden Smith was a standout wide receiver at Northwest Rankin High School in Flowood, Mississippi β a suburb of Jackson β before starring at Northwest Mississippi Community College, then played three seasons at Louisville and wrapped up his collegiate career at Cincinnati.
While at Louisville, Smith βbecame closely acquainted with a guy by the name of Norman Seawright, who was a UPS Airlines captain at the time, and we just connected with a very common background,β Smith said.
βWeβre both from Mississippi and he was a college athlete as well back in his day. We got connected with that common background,β Smith said. βThen I was looking at some other avenues post football and he introduced me to aviation and talked to me about the process and how it goes.
βEnded up going to do a discovery flight with him and absolutely fell in love with it. At that point, I was still playing football and that was my primary focus, but aviation started trickling in the back of my head. Once football concluded, it was full-go. Thatβs where Iβm at now.β
Smith knew flying planes was the career he wanted. The summer leading up to his senior year at Cincinnati, he became a licensed pilot.
A year later, Smith was hired by Epic Flight Academy as an instructor at the Tucson International Airport campus.
βNever been to Arizona β really never been anywhere on the West side,β Smith said. βHappy to get out there and enjoy the scenery and the culture.β
How does one go from playing college football to instructing people how to fly planes? Smith joined βSpears and Aliβ on ESPN Tucson and discussed his path from the gridiron to the sky.
What do you have to do to become a licensed pilot?
A: βCertain hour requirements that you need, certain certificates and ratings that you need depending on the type of flying you want to do. For me, my goal has always been the airline-type flying. When I was at Cincinnati, I was able to self-fund the first certificate and rating. From there, I found a flight school in Florida, the Epic Flight Academy, and had an unbelievable experience. Itβs an outstanding flight school that I was really fortunate to be a part of. I ended up matriculating through (the) process down there and got my certificates and ratings.
βFortunate enough, I was able to get rehired by them down in Tucson. Iβm building up those hours now until I get to those hours that make (me) eligible to fly for an airline.β
What is your role at Epic Flight Academy?
A: βEssentially just teach and inspire the new generation of pilots. As weβve seen in the previous years, aviation has exploded into this community.
βAs a flight instructor, my job is to teach and inspire the people who were like me a year ago, the people jumping into this industry and want to fly for a living and fly for a career. My job is to teach and inspire the people who want to follow their dream.β
How was life growing up in the Jackson area?
A: βNothing but ball. Growing up in Mississippi, I ate and lived football and baseball. Thatβs all I did growing up. That was my environment and all my family knew, so I was very one-track minded with football growing up. It went all the way up until college when my college career ended. Down here in Mississippi, thatβs all we do, is play football and baseball.β
Were you an Ole Miss or Mississippi State fan growing up?
A: βDefinitely Mississippi State. Iβm a hardcore Mississippi State fan to this day. ... There was a phase in my life I was traveling to every away game, whether it was in Gainesville, Georgia, Tennessee, wherever. Growing up, wherever Mississippi State played, thatβs where I was.β
How much did football influence your life?
A: βGrowing up in Mississippi, football is something Iβve always been playing since I was 6 years old. I played it through my upbringing. My older brother played football, my dad played football, so it was passed down to me. ... Iβm really grateful for my football career.
βI think one of the biggest things that football taught me that I didnβt realize until I started flying, thereβs so many characteristics and traits that football develops and helps you transition into different areas of life and other careers. Iβm really grateful for football in that aspect. Iβm seeing the effect of character development that itβs done for me.β
Are football and aviation comparable?
A: βItβs been tremendous. From a mindset perspective and work ethic perspective, itβs very similar. When I first started flying, there was a lot of doubt. βIs this something I can do?β This isnβt something thatβs a lifelong dream. Itβs all very new.
βBut playing football and that mindset and traits that I developed in football really helped me transition to aviation. I catch myself feeling those same types of same traits and characteristics flying. In a sense, theyβre very similar.β
Do you have a dream plane you want to fly?
A: βThe dream plane is a Boeing 787. Hopefully one of these days, several years down the road, Iβll be the captain of.β
Whatβs the difference between walking down the tunnel to fly a plane versus the tunnel into a stadium with thousands of fans?
A: βItβs a high sense of responsibility and very similar to running out of the tunnel to 80,000 people watching you. Youβre the captain of a plane with hundreds of people in the back. Itβs a highly responsible job that requires a lot of poise and quick, efficient decision-making and thatβs the life of a pilot. It can be considered high-stressed.β