Kenneth Smith, starting offensive and defensive lineman for Baldwin football, verbally committed to attend Lake Erie College in Painesville, Ohio starting this fall on a full athletic scholarship. Smith signed the letter of intent Monday morning in the Baldwin High School media center surrounded by coaches, family and friends.

“First of all I want to thank God for this, because without him, I wouldn’t be sitting at this table right now,” Smith said before signing. “I also would just like to thank my loving family who have supported me from day one.”

Smith also expressed his appreciation to coach Lee Hannah for providing direction on and off the field.

“It put me on the right track and I personally thank you for that,” he said.

Smith had 18 tackles, three assists, five tackles-for-loss and four sacks in the 2016 season, grading out at 86 percent and allowing just three sacks offensively. He received the team Defensive Coach’s Award for his achievements along with a Region 3-AAAA Honorable Mention.

“He was an extremely valuable asset to what we did for three years,” Hannah said. “I’m just excited to see him grow and mature into the young man that he is.”

Assistant coach Randall Owens backed up Hannah’s comments.

“His leadership and his continued maturity has shown throughout the last three years, so we’re very happy and excited that he’s able to continue his academic and athletic career on the collegiate level,” Owens said.

Lake Erie College is an accredited private liberal arts university with an enrollment just under 1,000. The Lake Erie Storm athletic teams compete at the NCAA Division II level in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference.

Smith said that when he met football coach Gerald “Coach G” Hazzard at a scouting camp, he was immediately interested in the school.

“Me and him really clicked from the moment we met each other,” Smith said. “After that, other college coaches would try to talk to me and stuff, but for some reason, Coach G, he took it.”

Smith spent time with his future team during a campus visit before making his decision.

“The team really is a family. Everyone takes you in really quick. The first day I was up there they had me break out the huddle — they already accepted me as one of their brothers,” he said.

Smith said he was thankful for the opportunity to play football while pursuing education and a future career.

“I want to try to be an FBI agent or something in that range,” he said, “or be a coach or something like that.”

Smith will study criminal justice with a minor in sports medicine.