Mark Smith, Vicksburg native and former NFL star, dies at age 51
Mark Smith, a Vicksburg native who played six seasons in the NFL with the Arizona Cardinals and Cleveland Browns, has died. He was 51.
Smith was a standout football and basketball player at Vicksburg High School in the early 1990s, News.az reports, citing ABC News.
He earned The Vicksburg Post’s Warren County boys basketball Player of the Year award in 1993, but went on to craft his athletic legacy on the football field.
After earning NJCAA All-America honors while helping Hinds Community College win the 1994 Mississippi state championship, Smith was a starter for two seasons on Auburn’s defensive line.
Smith was was selected by the Arizona Cardinals in the seventh round of the 1997 NFL draft and played six seasons from 1997 to 2002 — the first four with the Cardinals and the last two with the Cleveland Browns. He finished his career with 20 sacks, including nine in 1998 when the Cardinals reached the second round of the playoffs.
Smith was inducted into both the Hinds Community College and Vicksburg Warren School District athletic halls of fame in 2024.
By Faig Mahmudov
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