Emmitt James Smith III (born May 15, 1969) is a former, Hall of Fame American football player. He was an All-American at the University of Florida before playing professionally for the Dallas Cowboys and Arizona Cardinals, and is the NFL's all-time rushing leader, a record formerly held by his childhood hero, Walter Payton. He is the only running back to ever win a Super Bowl championship, the NFL Most Valuable Player award, the NFL rushing crown, and the Super Bowl Most Valuable Player award all in the same season (1993). He is also one of four running backs to lead the NFL in rushing three or more consecutive seasons, joining Steve Van Buren, Jim Brown, and Earl Campbell. He was inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2010.
While playing for the Cowboys, Smith, Troy Aikman, and Michael Irvin were "The Triplets" who led their team to three Super Bowl championships during the 1990s.
Smith was born in Pensacola, Florida, and attended Escambia High School in Pensacola. During his football career there, Smith rushed for 106 touchdowns and 8,804 yards, which was the second most yardage in the history of American high school football at the time. Emmitt rushed for over 100 yards in 45 of the 49 games he started for Escambia (including the last 28 in a row) and finished with a 7.8 yards per carry average. Twice, he broke the 2000 yard rushing mark in a season.
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