The Brief
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Seahawks receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba is one win away from his first Super Bowl championship.
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Before he starred for the Seahawks, he made a name for himself at Rockwall High School in North Texas.
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His parents and high school coach reminisced on his path to stardom with FOX 4’s Jeff Kolb.
ROCKWALL, Texas – Seattle Seahawks star wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba is one win away from becoming a Super Bowl champion.
He couldn’t have gotten there without his foundational days starring at Rockwall High School in North Texas.
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Humble beginnings
What they’re saying
The first defender Jaxon ever challenged? His mother, Jami Smith. She signed him up for his first flag football team when he was three years old.
“He was just relentless about going and interrupting his brother’s practice,” Jami told FOX 4’s Jeff Kolb. “I had to sign a waiver because he was actually too young to be on the team.”
By the time he got to high school, his father, Maada Smith-Njigba, had Jaxon doing yard work, but not how you might expect.
“We had our own NIL. I used to pay Jaxon for yards. A dollar for a yard,” Maada explained. “He rattled off like 350 yards against Longview. Put up like 250 yards against Highland Park.”
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How much did he end up paying for his receiving yards?
“I would say probably about $2400 between junior and senior year,” Maada admitted.
An early shot at stardom
Rodney Webb, Smith-Njigba’s high school coach, thought Jaxon might have an NFL future the first time he saw him play.
“I did tell our staff that day that kid has a chance to play on Sundays,” Webb told Kolb. “You could just see it from an early age, he just has the “it” factor.”
Jaxon proved him right on the “it” factor early. He would go on to break the record for career receiving yards in Texas high school football’s largest classification.
What does Webb remember the most about watching Smith-Njigba play? The circus catches he made on a regular basis.
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“It was against North Mesquite. In that game, he ran a hitch route and as he came out of his break, his shoe came off,” Webb said. “He catches the hitch route. Turns up the field, reaches down and picks up his shoe. Runs about 5 more yards.”
“I’m making eye contact with someone else like did you just see what I just saw?”
The one-handed catches stick out too.
“The Mesquite game where he caught it one-handed in the end zone, down the sideline, over the cornerbacks’ head,” Webb continued. “He reaches out, gets it, it was just an amazing catch.”
PASADENA, CA – JANUARY 01: Ohio State Buckeyes wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba (11) runs past the tackle of Utah Utes cornerback Malone Mataele (15) during the Rose Bowl game between the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Utah Utes on January 1, 2022 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, CA. (Photo by Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Smith-Njigba ended up committing to Ohio State despite not receiving the most college interest until midway through his senior year’s playoff run.
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In Columbus, he would set multiple records, including the most ever receiving yards in an FBS bowl game with 347 against Utah in the Rose Bowl.
He ended up being drafted No. 23 overall by the Seattle Seahawks in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Understanding his history
Originally, you might have known the star receiver by a different name: Jaxon Smith. Webb says one day, Jaxon asked him to add Njigba onto his jersey.
Njigba is the name that Jaxon’s grandfather John came to the United States with in the 1970s when he came from Sierra Leone.
“He actually went there two years ago to walk the same roads his grandfather walked,” Maada told Kolb.
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When you see Smith-Njigba making highlight reel catches on TV, you can see the Sierra Leone flag on the back of his helmet.
“He made people pronounce the name,” Maada said. “Wish my daddy was alive to see his name on the back of jerseys. It just shows you that God is real.”
One blank space to fill
Jaxon’s parents know how special it’ll be to watch their son play in the Super Bowl on Feb. 8. If the Seahawks win, it would be his first ever championship at any level.
“I’m still processing this whole damn thing. I can’t believe that this is what it is,” Maada said of Jaxon’s success.
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“It’s gonna be special,” Jami said. “I’m joyfully obsessed with Jaxon’s success.”
The Source
Information in this story came from FOX 4 reporting.
