Not only did Torrey Smith see a familiar building when he arrived at Ravens headquarters after he was Baltimore’s second-round draft pick, but the University of Maryland product will have a familiar locker room when the NFL lockout ends.
Smith’s relationship with wideout Donte’ Stallworth at Miami’s Bommarito Performance Systems, where Stallworth helped train and coach Smith this offseason, prepared him for a life in purple and black.
“[Donte' has] told me nothing but great things,” said Smith. “I even talked to him last night after I got picked. He was like, ‘You’re going to love the organization and love the coaches. You’re lucky to learn from guys like Anquan [Boldin] and [Derrick] Mason.’
“He just said nothing but good things. He said it was a perfect place for me.”
Selected 58th overall, the Colonial Beach, Va., native learned a lot from Stallworth while preparing for the NFL Scouting Combine in South Florida.
Stallworth, who is slated to become an unrestricted free agent, even expressed his dismay that he might not get the opportunity to play with his protégé via Twitter.
“Just got a text from my lil bro @TorreySmithWR that made me sad… but glad my boys @AnquanBoldin & @deemason85 are there to take him in,” said Stallworth, referencing the Ravens’ veteran receivers.
The connections between Smith and the Ravens run deeper, as Baltimore features several former Terrapins in cornerback Josh Wilson, Jared Gaither and Domonique Foxworth.
Smith even trained with current Ravens cornerback Lardarius Webb at Bommarito for a few weeks.
“Donte’s been reaching out, I know Gaither, and Josh did the same thing,” said Wilson Smith. “Knowing those guys is only going to help my transition. Lardarius Webb, I trained with him down in Miami. I remember when he first came out there, he said, ‘Before you come to Baltimore, I’m scouting you now.’”
