Arriving at Tulsa in 2003, Smith played in eight games as a true freshman. He sat out the 2004 season as a
redshirt, then became the Golden Hurricane's starting quarterback in 2005. He led Tulsa to a 9–4 record and the
Conference USA title. He capped off the 2005 season with a 31–24 win over
Fresno State in the
2005 Liberty Bowl (Tulsa's first bowl win since 1991); Smith passed for 234 yards and a touchdown, and also ran for the winning touchdown. Smith was named the game's most valuable player. In 2006, Smith was tagged as one of
Conference USA's top quarterbacks in preseason, along with such players as future
Philadelphia Eagles quarterback
Kevin Kolb, and was widely recognized as the leader and face of the Tulsa football program. In Tulsa's scheme, Smith threw many
screen passes to
running backs Tarrion Adams, Courtney Tennial, and
wide receiver Idris Moss. The Golden Hurricane jumped out to a stellar 7–1 start with the inside track on a second straight West Division championship, but the team experienced a breakdown amid turmoil resulting from rumors of teams trying to woo away
coach Steve Kragthorpe. Tulsa lost its contest against
Utah in the
Armed Forces Bowl 25–13, making their season record stand at 8–5. In 2007, Smith led the Golden Hurricane to a 10–4 record and a win in the
2008 GMAC Bowl while also winning the 2007 Conference USA player of the year award In 2007, Smith won the
Wuerffel Trophy which goes to the top humanitarian in
college football and was a finalist for the
Draddy Trophy. He was also selected to play in the 2008 Cornerstone
Hula Bowl, where he passed for 47 yards and ran for the game's first two touchdowns for the winning Aina (East) team. A three-year
starter with the Golden Hurricane, Smith threw a combined 83
touchdown passes while taking his team to 3 straight
bowl appearances. Smith holds the
NCAA record with 14 consecutive games passing for more than 300 yards. Smith also shares in an
NCAA record as the only team to have a 5,000 yard passer, three 1,000 yard receivers, and a 1,000 rusher in the same season. ==Professional career==