Ex-Raiders fullback is battling Lou Gehrig's disease
Smith's former Penn State teammates are trying to help him out financially with an autographed lithograph
TIMES WIRE SERVICES
sports digest

Twenty years after Steve Smith helped Penn State win the 1986 national title, the former fullback is fighting for his life.

Smith's body is failing him, ravaged by Lou Gehrig's disease. Former college teammates are coming together to help the former Nittany Lions captain, who went on to play for the Raiders from 1987-93.

"You talk to Marcus Allen, you talk to Bo Jackson, or any running back that had him as a fullback, you never had to worry," former Penn State teammate D.J. Dozier said. "This man had his block. Whatever he needed to do, he was going to get it done."

That's why the three other captains from that Penn State squad -- John Shaffer, Shane Conlan and Bob White -- traveled to rural Woodward, Pa., recently to sign a lithograph depicting a scene from the 14-10 win over Miami in the Fiesta Bowl that secured the Nittany Lions' 1986 title. Dozier, who ran behind Smith's blocks, organized the effort. He says a portion of the profits will go to Smith's family to help pay medical bills.

Reliant on a ventilator, Smith can't talk. He has been fed formula through a feeding tube since May. He can't leave home, given all the medical machinery.

"Despite the situation, he's holding steady," said his wife, Chie, who was reached at the couple's home in Richardson, Texas. "His spirits are much better than his body is."

Lou Gehrig's disease is a degenerative nerve disease, also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, which gradually destroys the ability to control movement.

Smith's first diagnosis came in July 2002. A second opinion a month later, and a finally a third opinion -- on Sept. 11, 2002 -- confirmed their initial fears: He had Lou Gehrig's disease.

"Pretty much, the word would be he is 'paralyzed' from illness," said Chie Smith, who was a Raiders cheerleader when she met her future husband.

Smith's wife cares for him full time. There also are two teenage children to raise -- Dante and Jazmin -- and ALS groups have said it takes as much as $250,000 a year to care for a patient.

For information about the 1986 lithographs ($399 each), go to www.iplayedthegame.com.