Former Wolfpack defensive star killed in tragic drunk driving accident

A second former NC State defensive star from the last decade has lost his life just a few months after current NFL player, Corey Smith’s life tragically ended in a boating accident off the coast of Florida.

The N&O is reporting that former NC State linebacker, Edrick Smith was killed in car crash in Charlotte early Sunday morning.

CHARLOTTE — A former N.C. State University football player was killed early today when a new Camaro, speeding from 80 to 100 mph, hit the car in which he was riding, according to a police report.

Edrick Smith, 29, was in the back seat of a Honda Accord, which was split in two from the force of the collision at the intersection of North Tryon Street and Salome Church Road.

[snip]

Police say the driver of the Camaro, 30-year-old Hugo Fernando Rosillo, ran from the scene and was tracked down by a CMPD police helicopter and K-9 unit searching nearby woods.

Rosillo, who was alone in the car, was taken to a hospital. He was charged with second-degree murder, felony hit and run and drunken driving.

Also in the Accord were the driver, 30-year-old Hakeem Ward Holloway, and a passenger, 31-year-old Barry Tyrone Pace. They were both hospitalized, police said.

Smith’s wife, Karisa, said that she and the couple’s three children were “holding it together, but I don’t think it’s hit them, as well as me.”

Karisa Smith, who worked with her husband at Nationwide Insurance in Charlotte, called the driver of the Camaro “cowardly” for leaving the scene.

The crash is under investigation by CMPD’s accident reconstruction unit.

Edrick was the quintessential Joe Pate-recruit in the same ‘Alabama-mold’ as two super stars from the same area who followed him to Raleigh – Philip Rivers and Jerricho Cotchery. Not only was he a fantastic football player, but the coaches adored him and one former coach told me at the time that Edrick was one of the nicest players and most respected players to ever don the Wolfpack uniform.

On the field, Smith was a beast from the first moment he stepped on campus and had an amazingly bright future until an untimely injury at the beginning of his sophomore year changed his career. (I know it sounds odd that NC State has ever had a promising athlete experience a career altering injury or misfortune near the pinnacle of their rise to stardom.) In fact, SFN contributor ‘Dogbreath’ named the ‘pre-injured’ Smith to SFN’s “All-Amato 50 Man Roster” in this entry from 2006.

The N&O article states the following:

From North Fork, Ala., Smith set the record in 1998 for tackles by a true freshman. He was on track to be a national defensive standout and NFL prospect when his career was sidelined by an injury.

[snip]

Smith started nine games as a freshman in 1998, and his 94 tackles that season were the most any Wolfpack freshman had made in 11 years. He entered the 1999 season as a candidate for the Butkus Award, given annually to the best linebacker in the nation.

In the season opener that season against Texas, he tore the medial collateral and anterior cruciate ligaments in his knee. He was optimistic that he would make an impact again for the Wolfpack. But after returning for the 2000 season, he suffered a torn labrum in his shoulder that limited his contributions.

He didn’t play football in 2001, and then-coach Chuck Amato said he wasn’t sure Smith was ever the same after the injury.

May God show grace and mercy on Edrick’s family and his three children. I certainly hope the Charlotte Chapter of the NC State Alumni Association can find a way to offer support to the Smith family.

Alums NCS Football

22 Responses to Former Wolfpack defensive star killed in tragic drunk driving accident

  1. 61Packer 08/16/2009 at 9:43 PM #

    Will the McClatchy newspapers in Charlotte or Raleigh tell their readers if this is another case of an yet another illegal alien killing innocent people while driving drunk and then fleeing the scene, or will their editors again blame the DOT for not having a protective barrier or some other device along the stretch of road where this happened?

  2. Jeff 08/16/2009 at 9:58 PM #

    Is it confirmed that Hugo Fernando Rosillo is an illegal?

  3. wolfonthehill 08/16/2009 at 10:41 PM #

    God bless you, Edrick. I remember being so damn excited about him… he & Levar Fisher were set up to be one of the baddest-ass linebacker duos in the country, and in our school’s history… until the inevitable injury reared its ugly head.

    I know we’re probably just more aware of these things when they happen to Pack players, but it truly seems like even our former players suffer more misfortune than random chance would allow. WTF?

  4. Wufpacker 08/17/2009 at 4:44 AM #

    May he rest in peace, and may God watch over his family, especially his wife and young children, in this time of grief.

    Nothing good comes from drinking and driving. It absolutely floors me that DUI is still a misdemeanor.

  5. blpack 08/17/2009 at 7:15 AM #

    This is truly sad news. Life taken away at such a young age. Prayers go to the family and friends.

  6. 66pack 08/17/2009 at 7:51 AM #

    99 to 1 someone of this age and name is illegal.Wall street launders money and the great corrupt state of nc launders identities via DMV.

  7. Noah 08/17/2009 at 8:29 AM #

    Good lord, people….what damn bit of difference does it make (other than to justify your own personal hate)?

    You’re just as dead if you get killed by a white guy.

    Take that bullshit somewhere else and show a little respect. I’m sure you won’t have any trouble finding a message board where you can vent your little hearts out on how awful it is that brown people live here.

  8. Six Pack 08/17/2009 at 8:54 AM #

    Noah,
    While I agree with you that this is not the forum to discuss illegal immigration, I have to ask you this question: Why are you assuming that the driver is “brown?” No one else made that assertion and besides, the debate about illegal immigration has nothing to do with skin color, it’s all about upholding the rule of law. If it had been an illegal Irish national or illegal Swede, I for one, would be just as angry.

  9. Daily Update 08/17/2009 at 9:49 AM #

    Edrick’s freshman year was with MOC. Not sure how he could qualify for a list of Amato’s top players. He looked like an NFL the first game I saw him play. Other great linebackers from that era include D. Burnette, L. Fisher and Clayton White.

    SFN: It was a list of people that had played for Amato regardless of who did the recruiting.

  10. Thinkpack17 08/17/2009 at 10:12 AM #

    Give me a break Six Pack.

    The guy’s name is Hugo Fernando Rosillo…he isn’t an Irish Immigrant. I am not one who usually agrees with Noah but come on, the guy is right. It’s pretty obvious what these guys were getting at. People who talk like that aren’t speaking about Canadians. Respect the dead and don’t attach your own agenda to a family’s tragedy.

  11. PackMan97 08/17/2009 at 11:07 AM #

    Sadly, so many strong emotions appear after a tragedy like this. Many Wolfpackers have had drunk driving affect their lives and not in a positive way.

    My prayers go out to Smith and his family.

  12. bradleyb123 08/17/2009 at 11:07 AM #

    First of all, RIP Edrick. Condolences to his family and friends.

    The rest of this post is off-topic, but I wanted to respond to something as this hits close to home with me.

    ^^^ “Take that bullsh!t somewhere else and show a little respect. I’m sure you won’t have any trouble finding a message board where you can vent your little hearts out on how awful it is that brown people live here.”

    I wanted to respond to this and say I don’t think the problem we have is with people being “brown”. I don’t care WHO lives in this country, as long as they live here legally. It oversimplifies the problem to simply label it racism. I don’t know if this guy is illegal or not (and I’m not accusing him of being illegal). But I do get a little more upset when things like this happen, and the perpetrator turns out to be an illegal — someone that is not SUPPOSED to be here anyway.

    My wife is from another country. I know firsthand how difficult it is to get the paperwork done properly. And it is somewhat expensive. My wife’s sister is also here, TRYING to get her permanent residency. She would love to bring her son here, as well. (He is still in their home country, and she is missing out on his early teen years in hopes of a better life for them both.) This is a difficult and painful process. So YES, it makes my blood boil when I hear about people hopping the fence and bypassing our system. And some people even want to make them legal. I say, go back home, and come back in — through the FRONT door!

    So you see, a LOT of us (I think MOST of us) have problems with this that go FAR beyond the color of their skin.

  13. Manu Ginobili 08/17/2009 at 11:14 AM #

    I read this blog everyday, but I rarely post any comment, except maybe if it’s about state soccer. When I read this post yesterday, I thought that by comment #5 somebody will assume that the as*hole that killed Smith was a Hispanic illegal based on his name. It was comment #1.

    I am an immigrant, I am Hispanic, and I am not illegal. I was an international student at state (BSCE 06). What 61Packer and 66pack are doing is racial profiling. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not defending Rosillo, he should be charged with first degree murder, intent to kill, and any other charge you can throw to him. And if he’s indeed an illegal, deport him after serving his sentence. But Smith is already dead and at this point it doesn’t matter what Rosillo’s immigration status (if any) was. You have as many chances to get killed by a white, black, asian or hispanic drunk driver.

    And Six Pack, let’s be honest, it the drunk driver’s name was Seán T. Ó Ceallaigh or Lars Magnus Ericsson, his immigration status wouldn’t even be questioned.

  14. StateFans 08/17/2009 at 11:42 AM #

    Didn’t Damien Covington pass away a few years ago? Pretty sad stuff for some of our all-time best.

  15. Thinkpack17 08/17/2009 at 11:59 AM #

    Bradley,

    We all understand your concerns, what we are trying to say is that this is not the time or the place to voice those views. Out of respect for this man I think we could hold off on the citizenship debates. Remember the man and leave that other stuff for another day.

  16. 61Packer 08/17/2009 at 12:53 PM #

    I want to make it clear to Manu Ginobiti and everyone else on here that my comment at the beginning of this forum had nothing to do with racial profiling. Go back and read it again.

    My anger is directed solely at the News & Observer, a paper that does its best to protect, usually through omission of facts, the kind of behavior that resulted in this column being written in the first place.

    Don’t go putting labels on me.

  17. Six Pack 08/17/2009 at 1:14 PM #

    Look, sure you can infer all you want, but that in and of itself is profiling. Sure, the killer has a Spanish name, but that doesn’t mean he is necessarily from any country south of the US border. He could be from Spain. Last time I checked, the Spanish were European, sure Southern European but European nonetheless.

    Manu,
    Your right, if the killer’s name had been Sean Flanigan or Lars Gustafson his immigration status would not have been immediately questioned, but if it came out later that he was, in fact, illegally in this country my outrage for him being in a position to cause this terrible crime would be no less emphatic.

    Basically, like bradleyb123 said if you want in this country come through the front door, following the appropriate laws and regulations.

    I would also like to convey my deepest condolences and prayers for Edrick’s family during this extremely difficult time.

  18. bradleyb123 08/17/2009 at 1:39 PM #

    ^^^ “We all understand your concerns, what we are trying to say is that this is not the time or the place to voice those views. Out of respect for this man I think we could hold off on the citizenship debates. Remember the man and leave that other stuff for another day.”

    I agree. I just wanted to point out that we have legitimate issues with illegal immigration. It is not a racism issue, as Noah seems to think. That is an oversimplification of this issue.

    It’s out of line and disrespectful to assume the driver was illegal, though. We really have no idea based on the facts that we know.

  19. StateFans 08/17/2009 at 2:19 PM #
  20. NCSU88 08/17/2009 at 9:15 PM #

    RIP Edrick. My mom always said nothing good happens after midnight.

  21. tjfoose1 08/18/2009 at 6:57 PM #

    I don’t give a rats behind what race the guilty are, they all need locked up… however, the illegal immigrant angle inflames emotions because illegal immigrant drunk drivers who kill should not have been in the country to begin with, let alone driving on our streets, let alone driving on our streets drunk. If our leaders and law enforcement had done their job, the dead would still be alive.

    Throw in the ‘sanctuary city’ status (and like sentiment held by many) of some of the greater metropolitan areas in the country, and you have politicians and law enforcement refusing to perform their constitutional duties in applying and enforcing the law. They shirk their #1 RESPONSIBILITY, protecting citizens. Thus, in effect, illegal immigrants are favored over citizens with preferential treatment. Sometimes ending in senseless deaths…

    THAT is what causes the heated arguments and the rants about illegal immigrants, not racism. If you can’t see that simple fact, then you are the hater, you are the racist, you are the problem.

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