Rice University Athletics
Football: Practice Report #31
10/31/2000 12:00:00 AM | Football
Smith, who has started all eight games this season at cornerback, left last week's loss at Texas Christian with a rib injury, but coach Ken Hatfield said following Tuesday's practice that Smith was not as severely injured as first feared.
"Kenny has bruised ribs, not broken as we thought," Hatfield said. "I don't know if he'll be able to play; it's just a severe, deep bruise. If he can get to the point where he can cut and twist without it hurting him, he could play."
The Owls do have a safety net at the position. Senior Adrian Sadler, a three-year starter at cornerback who was moved to offense in the spring, is now practicing in the secondary. Hatfield said that Sadler doesn't seem to have missed a beat.
"He felt comfortable with everything on defense," added Hatfield. "I told him that the team needed him at that position. You can't hide at cornerback, but he's made big plays for us.
"Of course, that's where all the pro scouts want to look at him. He has great speed and can cover one-on-one. This may help him, too, with some evaluations."
Game time for Rice's 2000 Homecoming game is 2 pm (CST).
