Texas A&M receiver Ainias Smith arrested on DWI, weapons charges

Smith, a team leader who was supposed to be one of three players to attend the media days Thursday along with coach Jimbo Fisher, was released Wednesday after posting bonds totaling $8,000.  

He was subsequently suspended Wednesday from the football program per athletics department policy, and will not attend media days. A possible replacement was being discussed later Wednesday, according to a school spokesman, and A&M’s representatives are expected to fly in from College Station on Thursday morning.  

Smith was pulled over for speeding shortly after 2 a.m. Wednesday on University Drive near the Northgate bar district and arrested for DWI after failing a field sobriety test, according to a probable cause statement. A search of his vehicle then turned up a “rolled joint of marijuana” and a handgun with a “full magazine and a round chambered” in the center console, according to the police report. 

An officer then interviewed Smith at the Brazos County Jail, where he’d been taken for the DWI arrest, and he denied owning the handgun or the marijuana, according to the report. A passenger who was released also denied owning the gun or marijuana, according to the probable cause statement.  

Smith, whom reporters had come to rely on for insight last season win or lose, was supposed to appear at the final of the four media days Thursday in Atlanta along with Fisher and teammates Demani Richardson and Layden Robinson.  

Smith, a 5-foot 10, 185-pound senior from Dulles High School, has more than 1,300 yards receiving over the past three seasons, and has played a role as the Aggies’ Mr. Everything in receiving, rushing and on special teams.  

In smoothly stepping into a running back role when needed, Smith has rushed for 373 yards in the past three seasons, in averaging 5.8 yards per carry. He’s the younger brother of former NFL defensive back Maurice Smith, who played for Alabama and Georgia in college and primarily for the Miami Dolphins spanning a four-year NFL career from 2017-2020. 

Ainias Smith’s arrest was disappointing for A&M fans, considering he’s developed into a team leader for the Aggies entering Fisher’s fifth season, and reporters counted on the stand-up playmaker to speak for the team following both wins and losses. 

“Ainias makes it (look) really easy,” fellow A&M receiver Jalen Preston once said of Smith’s devotion to football. “He’s always in his playbook and always studying, and he always knows the next step of the defense. He makes crazy plays I’ve never seen before.  

“He also has a giant heart, and I love playing with him.” 

Three years ago Smith, also a surehanded punt returner, shifted to running back from receiver for the 2019 Texas Bowl against Oklahoma State, following a handful of injuries and transfers at running back. He helped guide the Aggies to a 24-21 victory over the Cowboys in NRG Stadium in his hometown. 

“That’s the name of the game now, you’ve got to be able to mismatch guys and move guys around,” Fisher once said of Smith’s ability to adeptly shift positions on offense. “Your great players are not only instinctive, but they have great knowledge and are very intelligent to be able to play this game today – to be able to be utilized to the maximum of their abilities.”  

A&M’s already suspect receiving corps has been hit hard in the offseason. Fisher dismissed former five-star prospect Demond Demas after Demas was arrested in early March on a charge of assault family violence. The alleged victim was Demas’s then-girlfriend.  

Demas already had been suspended by A&M at the time for failing to attend class, according to a university official, and he was removed from the team following the arrest.  

The Aggies open their season on Sept. 3 against Sam Houston, before hosting Appalachian State a week later. Their first real test of the season is expected to be Sept. 17 at Kyle Field against Miami and new Hurricanes coach Mario Cristobal.