Twins Erick and Derick Smith say overcoming adversity, friendly competition help them succeed in football and life

Competition, camaraderie and adversity have been key to the success of twin brothers and football standouts Derick and Erick Smith of Southside High School.

The seniors have been recruited by colleges with Derick getting a lot of national attention for committing first to the University of Alabama and switching over the summer to Auburn University. See that story here.

The twins, who are 17, hope to be powerhouse players for the Panthers this year and one benefit of having them playing together is: “We think alike,” Erick said during an interview together with the Black Belt News Network at Best Buy Teen Tech Center’s Media Day at Wallace Community College Selma.

They’re excited about the 2024 football season starting with their first game on Aug. 30 against rival Selma High on their home turf.

“I want to paint my own picture this year,” Erick said. “We’re going to be bigger than they ever thought.“

With a significant height difference between the two, they have different strengths. Erick plays the receiver position on offense and Derick plays both side of the ball.

But they are adamant that they don’t compete against each other – unless it’s on the practice field.

“We’re not competitive like that – outside of school we don’t compete,” Erick said. “We will never be in competition unless it’s in practice against each other.”

The twins said they are uniquely prepared to compete at the collegiate level because they’ve pushed each other to play better and better on the field – and in life – their whole lives.

While admitting they fought a lot as kids, they said they root for each other to do their best.

They also overcame the loss of their mother when they were 16 to an illness, which both said made them stronger. 

“We look at our dad getting up at 4 a.m. to go to work and that makes us want to work even harder,” Derick said.

Derick is going to Auburn and talks about his reasons for choosing the Tigers in a story here and video interview here, but Erick said he’s not sure he will follow his brother. 

“I want to go to college, but I’m not sure about which would be the best fit,” he said. “I don’t want to separate, but I have to figure out what’s right for me.”

The twins hope to make it big in football as long as possible, but after that they plan to open a construction business together. 

Watch the full interview here.