The 2024 National Football League draft finished up on Saturday and among the 257 players picked in seven rounds was one with local ties.
Chau Smith-Wade, a 5-foot-10, 184-pound cornerback out of Washington State, went to the Carolina Panthers with the 22nd pick in the fifth round as the No. 157 overall pick.
The 21-year-old Smith-Wade grew up in Aurora and played with Aurora Central High School’s Futures team in seventh and eight grades, before he made the varsity team as a freshman and sophomore. Playing on both sides of the ball, Smith-Wade played in seven games as a freshman in 2016 and appeared in six games as a sophomore in 2017, as he amassed 245 all-purpose yards on offense and had 21 tackles and a team-leading two interceptions on defense.
After his sophomore year, Smith-Wade moved to Illinois and enrolled in the Simeon Career Academy, where he found success and earned a chance to play at Washington State, where he appeared in 33 games between 2020 and 2023. He finished with 103 tackles, 21 passes defense and three interceptions for his career.
Smith-Wade missed the final five games of his junior year due to injury. He came back in time to participate in the Senior Bowl.
ESPN’s pre-draft description of Smith-Wade stated: “quicker than he is fast, and he plays with good balance matching up underneath. …his timing and toughness make him competitive at the catch point.”
— Sports Editor Courtney Oakes