Early years

Smagala grew up in Chicago, Illinois and attended St. Laurence High School, where he played as a running back. He accepted a scholarship from the the University of Notre Dame, where he was converted to cornerback.

Although head coach Lou Holtz tried to convince him to transfer to another school, at one point he was the team's second fastest player (4.35 seconds in the 40-yard dash) behind wide receiver Tim Brown and eventually became a three-year starter at right cornerback.

His most famous play was a 64-yard interception return for a touchdown against the number 2 ranked University of Southern California in 1988. He also helped the team win a national championship and a school-record 23-game winning streak.

Professional career

Los Angeles Raiders

Smagala was selected by the Los Angeles Raiders in the fifth round (123rd overall) of the 1990 NFL Draft and was traded to the Dallas Cowboys in exchange for a sixth round (#158-James Williams), eighth round (#197-Arthur Jimerson), ninth round (#230-Leon Perry), tenth round (#259-Jim Szymanski) and an eleventh round (#304-Myron Jones) draft choice.

Dallas Cowboys

On September 23, 1990, he suffered a broken left forearm while playing against the Washington Redskins and was later placed on the injured reserve list. He was waived on August 26, 1991 and later re-signed on October 17 to replace rookie Donald Smith. He appeared in 8 games, playing mainly on special teams and making 8 tackles.

Pittsburgh Steelers

On April 2, 1992, the Pittsburgh Steelers signed Smagala as a Plan B free agent. He was placed on the injured reserve list with a knee injury on September 1. He was released on August 22, 1993.

Personal life

After football he worked in a Real Estate Development company.

[ Source: Wikipedia ]