If there’s one major hole to fill on the South Alabama offense this spring, it’s at center.

Two-year starter James Jackson exhausted his eligibility after the 2022 season, and left a sizable void in the middle of the Jaguars’ offensive line. First into the breach this spring is Reggie Smith, who moves over after starting at right guard in all 13 games last season.

“I played center in high school my senior year,” Smith said. “So coming into college I though that’s where I would play, because that’s usually where they put the smaller offensive linemen. But it’s been a pretty easy transition for me because I played it the majority of the time growing up. I’m comfortable there, so it’s been pretty smooth so far.”

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Smith is the classic college football success story. Undersized and unrecruited out of Escambia High School in Pensacola, Fla., he chose to walk-on with the Jaguars in 2018 under then-head coach Steve Campbell, who grew up in northwest Florida.

Smith remains smallish for a Division I college football lineman, having settled in at 295 pounds on his 6-foot-1 frame (by comparison, Jackson was listed at 6-3, 319 last season). He makes up for his lack of size by outworking those around him, second-year South Alabama offensive line coach Gordon Steele said.

“He’s got great work ethic,” Steele said. “When I first got here, you could tell he had good feet, he was a smart guy. He’s dropped some weight and really locked into the new system. He’s become a guy that does stuff right all the time, here and away from the building. All those little things just kind of built on top of each other and made him a starting offensive lineman for us.”

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South Alabama football spring practice

After Campbell’s staff left and Steele arrived along with head coach Kane Wommack prior to the 2021 season, Smith became something of an afterthought amid numerous incoming Division I transfers and high school recruits. But due to a number of injuries along the line, he wound up taking the majority of reps at left tackle last spring.

By the time fall camp was over the regular season began, Smith had settled in as the first-team right guard, beating out several scholarship players for the position. He was awarded a scholarship, and paid back the coaching staff’s confidence in him by playing nearly every meaningful snap for a Jaguars team that broke through with a 10-3 record last season.

He also worked as the backup center behind Jackson, an honorable mention All-Sun Belt pick in 2022.

“I learned a lot of the secrets with James being there last year,” Smith said. “James taught me so much playing center under him and playing next to him at guard and seeing what a center needs to do. Now I’m in that spot and stepping up to be the next guy there.”

Three South Alabama offensive line positions appear largely set heading into the spring, with Josh McCulloch back at left tackle, Adrein Strickland back at right tackle and Dontae Lucas returning at left guard. (Lucas, though, is limited this spring due to injury).

Smith moving to center obviously creates a hole at guard, though the Jaguars have plenty of options for that position. Former Tennessee transfer James Robinson was recruited last season with the idea of being an eventual starter at guard, and played in eight games mostly on special teams in 2022.

Also back is Reid Gavin, a redshirt sophomore who played in three games in 2021 and nine games last year. Then there is Reed Buys, a Mississippi State transfer who arrived this spring and can play either guard or center.

“Everybody that’s there, everybody that plays guard on our roster is going to get a shot at it,” Steele said. “And quite frankly, everybody’s going to get a shot at center, too. It’s part of spring. Everybody’s going to be rolled in there. We’re going to find the best five throughout spring to go into summer and fall camp with.”

South Alabama is back on the practice field Monday morning. The Jaguars’ Pro Day is set for Monday afternoon.