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Justin Smart is going back where he started. When he arrived at SMU two years ago from Marshall, Texas, the former all-district linebacker was moved to defensive end, where he became a fixture in the Mustang lineup. As a sophomore, he was moved back to his high school position. But when the SMU coaches decided to switch the Mustangs’ base defensive formation in the 2009 season from the 4-3 to the 3-4, Smart found himself back with the defensive ends.

“It makes sense,” he said. “In the 4-3, the linebacker usually are a little bigger. In the 3-4, they rely more on speed. You’ve got to have fast guys who can really run. I’m pretty fast for a defensive end, so in the 3-4, a better fit.

“Coach (defensive coordinator Tom) Mason is going to put the best 11 players on the field. It doesn’t matter to me where he wants me – linebacker, defensive end, whatever – as long as I get on the field. I just want to help the team win.”

Smart started 10 games last year at middle linebacker, and finished the season as the Mustangs’ second-leading tackler, with 74. As a freshman, he played in 11 games at defensive end, starting six, and recorded a sack and 29 tackles, including a season-high seven at Houston, to earn conference all-freshman team honors from the Conference USA coaches.

Justin Smart was named to the Conference USA All-Freshman Team in 2007 (photo by Travis Johnston).

While he has more experience at linebacker, where he played in high school, Smart said he is looking forward to returning to defensive end.

“Rushing the passer is exciting,” he said. “Getting a sack is a big adrenaline rush. Ultimately, I just want to play football – that’s what counts to me. If the coaches think I can help the team most at defensive end, I’m ready.”

Smart has always been, above all, an aggressive defender who plays with immense energy and intensity, and said his style fits well with what defensive line coach Bert Hill expects from his charges.

“Coach Hill is a patient teacher, in a way, but he expects us to go hard all the time,” Smart said. “He tells us that if we make a mistake with our technique, he’ll work with that. But if there’s a lack of effort – he has no tolerance for that.”

Smart said he thinks the Mustangs’ impending switch from the 4-3 to the 3-4 is the logical move, considering the team’s personnel and the offenses they’ll face throughout the season.

“Conference USA has a lot of spread offenses,” he said. “Against spread offenses, you have to have as much speed as possible on the field. Going to the 3-4 allows us to get faster as a defense.”

The move is possible in part because of the increased size of the defensive linemen, particularly at the defensive end spots. Taylor Thompson (6-6, 256) emerged as a starter toward the end of the 2008 season, and is joined at the defensive end spots by Smart (6-2, 237), JUCO transfer Marquis Frazier (6-4, 281), Torlan Pittman (5-11, 275), Patrick Fleming (6-4, 236), Kevin Grenier (6-4, 255) and wildcard Margus Hunt (6-8, 270). The bulkier ends will allow the smaller-but-faster linebackers to run free to the ball, Smart said.

“That’s why I asked Coach Mason if he wanted me to add weight to move back to defensive end,” Smart said. “I’m about 240 now, and he said with my strength and speed, he’s comfortable with that size. So now it’s just a matter of polishing my technique.”

Smart is among a handful of Ponies who have worked on deep-snapping this spring, and expects to remain a factor on several special teams.

“(How many special teams) probably depends on where I am on the depth chart,” he said. “If I’m a starter or second-string, I’ll probably be taken off one of the special teams. If I’m lower than that on defense, I’ll play more on special teams.

“It goes back to playing, though. I just want to play, and I’ll do whatever they ask me to do. This defense is going to be better this year, and this team is going to be better this year. If I can help by playing defensive end or by playing a lot of special teams, that’s all that matters. I just want to play, and I want to win.”