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Late in the third quarter, Rod Smith left the game for good with a sense of relief. Not just because he got to rest a sore hip, but also because he had the SAC record – at last.
Smith’s 62-yard touchdown run with 5:08 remaining in the third gave him 238 yards in a 63-7 win over Elmhurst on Friday and put the Harding senior running back on top of the SAC’s all-time rushing list.
The Ohio State recruit has 5,359 career yards and surpassed former Wayne standout Ray Byers’ previous mark of 5,328 yards, set two years ago.
“Finally,” Smith said of the record-breaking run down the sideline into the end zone. “I had the record on another run, but they caught me from behind. I went in there for one more series, and I finally got it. I was relieved. There has been a lot of pressure on me this season.
“Everybody can stop bothering me about it. I am happy to get it over with. People had been worrying about me setting goals for myself, but me and my teammates are more focused on the team. We don’t think about the records.”
Smith had 141 yards at halftime and played in the third quarter, despite injuring his hip on the first offensive series.
“I wanted to stick in there with my team,” said Smith, who spoke with Byers on the sidelines after the game. “I know we have a lot of stuff to work on. I am also happy to finally break the record. It means I am up there as good as Ray Byers. (Byers) keeps telling me positive stuff, and I was happy for him to see me as one of the great backs coming out of Fort Wayne.”
Harding coach Sherwood Haydock said Smith would have been on the sidelines at the end of third, with or without the record.
“Because of our numbers situation, we don’t pull everybody until the fourth quarter,” Haydock said. “He was banged up a little bit, and I asked him if he wanted to go or not. I told him he was close enough, but he might not get it, and he said he would play the third quarter. If he would have gotten it or not, he would have been out of there at the end of the third quarter. We decided during the week just to let things happen.”
Smith, who has 589 rushing yards in three games this season, carried the ball 15 times against the Trojans (1-2) and scored three touchdowns.
“To see him in person, he is just a big, physical back,” Elmhurst coach Kyle Beauchamp said. “I thought if we could have done a better job of getting him down on initial contact, we would have had a little more success tonight. It is easier said than done against a guy like that.”
Harding (3-0) trailed 7-6 before scoring 57 unanswered points. Hawks had more than 600 yards of total offense, and quarterback Zac Haydock, the coach’s son, threw for 259 yards and four touchdowns.
The Hawks’ defense forced six turnovers and returned an interception and a fumble for touchdowns.
