Autopsy results of Andrew

bdan2002 · September 23, 2004

UNT QB Smith intoxicated at time of death

Autopsy also revealed marijuana in his system

09:26 PM CDT on Wednesday, September 22, 2004

By BRETT VITO / Denton Record-Chronicle

DENTON – North Texas quarterback Andrew Smith was legally intoxicated and had marijuana in his system at the time of his fatal car accident in central Texas last month, an autopsy report shows.

His blood alcohol level was 0.13, according to toxicology tests. The state's legal limit is .08.

"There is no way to tell a definitive timeline, but it is likely that he smoked marijuana within 24 hours of the accident," said Dr. Elizabeth Peacock, the deputy medical examiner in Travis County who performed the autopsy. "He had the active ingredients in his blood stream."

Smith was driving alone at about 5 a.m. from College Station to Denton to report for the beginning of UNT's fall practices when he swerved into oncoming traffic and was struck by a tractor-trailer on State Highway 6 outside of Calvert, south of Waco. Smith, who was not wearing his seatbelt, was thrown from the car and died of multiple massive traumatic injuries at the scene. He was 21.

Smith spent the night before the accident visiting friends and ex-high school teammates at Texas A&M, including Byron Jones, a senior defensive back. He left College Station early Saturday morning and traveled less than 50 miles before the accident occurred.

"We played basketball and went swimming," Jones said days after Smith's death. "He was in a hurry to get back. I just told him I would talk to him later."

Jones said Wednesday that he did not see Smith after 7 p.m. the night before the accident.

UNT head football coach Darrell Dickey said he had no comment on the autopsy results.

"I don't have access to that information, and I have not requested that information because I believe it is a private family matter and out of respect for the Smith family, myself and our football team, will have no comment on the results whatever they are," he said.

Smith, an ex-Bay City star, was described by his teammates as a respected member of the UNT community. He stepped into the starting lineup as a redshirt freshman in 2002 after starter Scott Hall was injured and led the team to an 8-4 record as a starter and a win in the New Orleans Bowl.

Smith began the 2003 season as the Mean Green's starting quarterback before giving way to Hall in the fifth game of the year.

September 23, 2004

JDWest567 · September 23, 2004

Not a good thing at all.

shaneb · September 23, 2004

Terrible news for the family and friends of Drew.

Often good people just make poor decisions. It probably could have been most of us at some time in our college career. I am ashamed to admit, but will, that it often could have been me on the alcohol side.

Shane

Edited September 23, 2004 by shaneb

j0nat8an · September 23, 2004

very unfortunate to hear, but maybe it will serve as a wakeup call for others.

Coach · September 23, 2004

What a horrible start to my day.

It makes me sick that Andrew made the decision he did, but when alcohol is factored in, making the right decision is a crapshoot. I would hope that anyone that reads this will call a designated driver or cab or whatever if you have to even THINK about if you are sober enough to drive. It's not worth it. Just remember Andrew.

#12

September 23, 2004

Terrible decision ... damn.

Personally, I would rather not know this sort of detail.

It is like finding out Pat Tilman was killed by friendly fire. That is a detail I would rather not know.

I KNOW about the dangers of drinking and driving. And there is also the hidden danger of waking up after a night of drinking/smoking and still being drunk (and you don't even know it).

With this information, it *could* help someone. However, the pessimist in me thinks that the people it *could* teach about the dangers of alchohol/drugs/sleepy driving are the same people that will dismiss that lesson because he proved to be a moron. I, of course, don't think he was a moron. He showed throughout his life that he was a nice guy. His family is proof of that.... this was a grave decision. I KNOW he would wish to take it back if he could. It is just so terribly sad.

I don't want the final decision to overcast what was his whole life. I respect him, I respect his family and I respect his memory.

1) Don't drink and drive

2) Don't do drugs (especially don't drive afterwards)

3) Don't drive tired

4) Don't wake up after a night of drinking and assume you sober enough to drive. It can take a day for all the alcohol to get out of your blood.

5) Think about the decisions you make and how that can potentially affect your parents. If you don't love your parents, think about your dog. Just think about how it affects your loved ones... Don't live a selfish life.

That's all I have.

Edited September 23, 2004 by JohnDenver