Smith joined the Rampage at the
beginning of the 2007-2008 season fresh after recovery from a
knee surgery. As a result of the injury, the head coach warned
Smith that his level of play would be below what was needed;
that he would primarily be a practice player for the first
season; and that he would be a healthy scratch during games.
Smith chose to sign with the Rampage in spite of the coaches
dismal projections and wound up going above and beyond proving
him wrong.
A standout defenseman from the start of that first season,
Smith's dominance on the ice was only exceeded by his character
off the ice. "Ty is, hands down, the single best example of the
type of person and player we want to have," General Manager
Julie Wilson says "his character, his commitment to the
community, his academic diligence, and his work ethic are second
to none." Unfortunately Smith suffered another injury and
subsequent surgery that took him out of the lineup during the
second half of the season. Again, he didn't let that deter him
from working his way back and signing with the Rampage for the
2008-2009 season.
Once again Smith set the bar for excellence. On the ice he
was a dominant defensive force, while off the ice he made his
mark as a leader. Although he suffers from a learning
disability, Smith was determined to uphold the Rampage academic
requirements, making the honor roll at Jenks High School as a
result. He also served as a peer counselor at the school in
which he helped other students with similar problems.
In order to give back to the hockey community that started
his run, Smith took on the position as head coach of a
recreational youth hockey team comprised of eleven and twelve
year olds. As the youngest coach in the association, he lead
that team to the Tulsa Youth Hockey League Championship, where
they were victorious. In addition he assisted with a
competitive team of the same age level and has continued
supporting the hockey community by assisting in summer clinics
for kids up through high school age and serving as an assistant
manager of a recreational summer league.
But hockey isn't Smith's only love. Another great source of
pride is his work with the Special Olympics where once again he
served as the head coach - only this time it was a baseball
team. Smith lead the elated youngsters all the way to winning
the gold medal in the state championships.
As if all of that service to the community weren't enough, he
also won the heart of the organization's staff by his behavior
alone. In two years time, he had only one disciplinary
conference and that came as a result of him missing curfew by
only three minutes. "Ty accidentally broke one rule in two
seasons and was absolutely remorseful because of it," Wilson
notes "he sincerely prides himself on being the best in every
aspect and in spite of the hardships he faces, he becomes the
best." So while Smith himself says that joining the Rampage was
"the best decision I ever made," Wilson doesn't hesitate to
counter by stating that "taking Ty on the team was the best dec
ision we ever made."
Julie Wilson General Manager - Tulsa Rampage 11063-D South Memorial, Mailbox 516 Tulsa, Oklahoma 74133 Office: (918) 392-0550 Cell: (918) 671-5312 Fax: (918) 392-0551 www.tulsarampage.com |
