Utah is creating Ring of Honor at Rice-Eccles Stadium, and Alex Smith will be the first inductee

Utah is establishing a Ring of Honor at Rice-Eccles Stadium, and its first inductee is one of the program’s greatest players.

Former quarterback Alex Smith will be the first former Utes player to receive the honor and be added to the newly-created Ring of Honor, with two additional players to be added each year after.

Smith will be honored at halftime of Utah’s season-opener against Southern Utah on Aug. 29.

“I am incredibly honored and humbled to become the first member of the Utah Football Ring of Honor this fall,” Smith said in a statement.

“I want to thank Director of Athletics Mark Harlan, President Taylor Randall and head coach Kyle Whittingham for allowing me to be a part of a new tradition within Utah Football that will carry a legacy for years to come. Utah Football has always been and will always be a part of my family and I, and having the honor to be a permanent part of Rice-Eccles Stadium is something I will cherish for the rest of my life. A Utah Man Am I Forever.”

Smith, the program’s only No. 1 NFL draft selection, had a stellar career in Salt Lake City. Smith took over as the starting quarterback in 2003, where he led the Utes to their first outright conference championship since 1957. In 2004, Smith quarterbacked the Utes to an undefeated 12-0 season as Utah became the first team from a non-automatic qualifying conference to earn a spot in a BCS Bowl, beating Pittsburgh 35-7 in the 2005 Fiesta Bowl.

Smith threw for 2,952 yards and 32 touchdowns and added 631 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns in 2004, being named the Mountain West Conference Offensive Player of the Year, Sports Illustrated’s National Player of the Year, and finishing fourth in Heisman Trophy voting. He still holds the school record for single-season touchdown passes (32) and total touchdowns (42).

Following his career at Utah, Smith was selected No. 1 overall by the San Francisco 49ers , where he played for eight seasons before being traded to the Kansas City Chiefs. In Kansas City, where Smith played for five seasons, the former Ute led the Chiefs to their first playoff win since 1993 and earned three Pro Bowl appearances.

After being traded to Washington in 2018, Smith suffered — and came back from — a gruesome leg injury that nearly claimed his life after a subsequent infection. After eight surgeries and an extensive rehab program in a military hospital due to the nature of his injury, Smith returned to the field in 2020, helping guide Washington to the NFC East championship and winning the NFL’s Comeback Player of the Year award.

He finished his 16-year NFL career with 35,650 passing yards and 199 touchdowns.

Off the field, Smith gave back to Utah, donating $500,000 to help build the Alex Smith Strength and Conditioning Facility in 2007, and also established the Alex Smith Foundation, which helps foster teens.

“The rich history of Utah Football has been written by so many tremendous student-athletes and coaches whose achievements have given our fans memorable moments from generation to generation,” Utah athletic director Mark Harlan said in a statement.

“It is fitting that we permanently recognize the all-time greats of Utah Football with the establishment of the Ring of Honor at Rice-Eccles Stadium, and we are excited to announce Alex Smith as our first inductee. His record of achievements both as a Ute and in the NFL, as well as his incomparable impact beyond the field, demonstrate all of the attributes that embody the spirit and identity of Utah Football. In this year of his induction into the College Football Hall of Fame, we congratulate Alex on being the inaugural member of the Utah Football Ring of Honor. We look forward to adding many more legends of Utah Football each year to join Alex in this prestigious group.”