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‘Wild-Eyed Southern Boy’ Tracy Smothers left his mark on the wrestling business

Posted: Nov 1st 2020 By: Mike Mooneyham

“A legit man’s man who just passed and with courage and dignity.” — Jim Ross

Much like his gimmick, Tracy Smothers was a genuine “Wild-Eyed Southern Boy,” a strapping son of the South who blended natural athletic skills with a likable, down-home personality.

So when word came down on Wednesday that Smothers had passed away at the age of 58, while there was great sadness among the wrestling community, many friends and followers talked about the courage Smothers had displayed battling an unrelenting disease for several years.

The Springfield, Tenn., native, who announced last year that he was undergoing chemotherapy for Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, had suffered heart damage from the first round of heavy chemo treatments.

Two weeks ago Smothers posted an ominous message on his Facebook page.

“They say fear is the best for motivation and I believe that to be true. I wrestled three different bears and I was petrified when I was young, but cancer is more scary than that by far. It’s relentless and is always lurking around.”

With his heart condition and recognizing the severity of the situation, Smothers noted that a positive attitude helped.

“Never give up on LIFE,” he added.

Just a day prior to his passing, Smothers took to Facebook again to announce that he was back in the hospital after hernia surgery aggravated his condition. It would be his final post.

Several GoFundMe campaigns and benefits had been set up to assist him in recent months. But he never gave up hope.

Tom Prichard feared the worst when he saw his longtime colleague at a special gathering for Bobby Eaton last December in Knoxville.

“We all knew he wasn’t doing good,” Prichard wrote on his Facebook page. “We all saw it but didn’t want to believe it. It’s going to happen to us all one day.”

“Tracy Smothers was the real deal,” added Prichard. “I saw those Wild Eyes many times throughout our time together in the business. He could be funny, charming, and completely insane and maniacal with the flip of a switch.”

Smothers, who was believed to have suffered more than two dozen concussions during his career, said last year that doctors found that he had “lots of head, body trauma.” A lawsuit Smothers filed with other former WWE performers in 2016 was eventually tossed out.

Universally respected

Regarded as one of the most underrated wrestlers of the ’90s, Smothers made his presence felt in a number of territories and in a variety of roles.

As one half of The Wild Eyed Southern Boys and The Young Pistols with partner Steve Armstrong, Smothers enjoyed runs with such teams as The Freebirds, The Midnight Express (Bobby Eaton and Stan Lane) and The Stud Stable (Robert Fuller and Jimmy Golden).

He was Freddy Joe Floyd in the WWF, his moniker a company rib on the Brisco Brothers, whose full names were Fred Joseph Brisco (Jack) and Floyd Gerald Brisco (Jerry). While used mainly as enhancement talent there, management entrusted the experienced veteran with putting over top stars such as Steve Austin, The Rock and Hunter Hearst Helmsley (Triple H), in addition to later serving as a trainer in the company’s developmental system.

In ECW, he provided comedy fodder as part of The Full-Blooded Italians, a hilarious act that included fellow Southerner Tommy Rich and Little Guido (James Maritato), none of whom were Italian.

Smothers was a top babyface in Jim Cornette’s Smoky Mountain Wrestling where he enjoyed high-profile programs with the likes of The Heavenly Bodies, The Gangstas and Chris Candido.

And overseas, notably in Japan, Smothers was a highly respected foreign talent, sharing tag-team titles with Cactus Jack (Mick Foley) and Chris Hamrick.

As effective as Smothers was in a babyface role, he was equally adept at drawing major heat and turning the cheers to jeers.

Just as importantly, the good-natured Smothers was the voice of reason outside the ring, always willing to dispense wisdom to young talent looking to master their craft.

“A great wrestler and a kind soul always willing to lend a hand or drop some knowledge. Very blessed to have known him. A credit to our business,” tweeted veteran Frankie Kazarian.

“The wrestling business needs more people like Tracy Smothers in the back to check guys,” echoed Dax Harwood of All Elite Wrestling. “He taught me about respecting the sanctity of pro wrestling, never making a mockery of it, and loving it unconditionally. I found out on many car rides he really was the Wild-Eyed Southern Boy.”

Known by many of his young charges and trainees as “Dad,” Smothers was universally respected among his peers in the wrestling profession over a career that spanned 35 years.

He was described as selfless, humble and kindhearted by close friends and associates. “A nicer guy you couldn’t find anywhere,” remarked one colleague.

“A great wrestler and even greater person,” tweeted former ECW star and current AEW talent Taz (Pete Senercia). “He was always cutting up and busting chops in the locker room ... Just a fun, talented dude always smiling. A spectacular career wrestling everywhere you could imagine over his years!”

Ironically, Smothers published his autobiography titled “(If You Don’t Buy This Book) Everybody Dies” earlier this year.

‘Great man’

The respect Smothers garnered in the wrestling business was evidenced by the hundreds of tributes that poured in last week on social media from friends and fans alike.

WWE Hall of Famer Adam “Edge” Copeland praised Smothers and credited the veteran with helping him and best friend and fellow Hall of Famer Christian (Jay Reso) during their early days on the road.

“Tracy Smothers took two young kids from Canada trying to ‘tour’ the southern United States, with $1.50 a day to spend on food, saw a dilemma we put ourselves in to try and get experience, and took us under his wing,” said Copeland.

“He knew we wanted it. Because of that, and his huge heart, he drove us to make the next town so we could eat our next meal. He found floors, couches or other talent who had spare space in their hotel rooms for us to sleep. On those drives he dispensed his knowledge. Always with a laugh and a twinkle in his eye. And we soaked it up. He was a great man. He truly knew what paying it forward meant. I will miss him.”

Former WWE world champion CM Punk (Phil Brooks) also posted a glowing tribute to Smothers on social media.

“Tracy was the first name I ever worked. He taught me so much just that first night, and continued to do so for years. He loved working shows full of young kids and always helped share his knowledge. Always asked if I was swimming and eating cans of tuna.

“His shadow boxing to warm up is legendary. I can hear it now if I close my eyes. I watched him try to take a guy’s eye out once, then immediately start brushing his teeth. One time he grabbed nachos from a fan and I was so terrified he was going to dump cheese all over me and I’d have to drive home from Kentucky covered in concession stand nacho cheese (no showers in IWA) but he said, ‘Block it, hit me with the cheese, kid.’ He wrestled bears. He was in the greatest tag match of all time with Brad vs. the Midnights. He was a THUG.

“T is for terrible, H is for hell, U is for ugly and G is for jail because a thug can’t spell! I can recite his SMW promo vs. Candido from the coal miners glove match by heart. Most IWA shows he would look out the curtain and say, ‘Well if they riot, we got ‘em outnumbered boys!’

“Fresh from a shower, covered in soap and barely holding a towel to his body he fought police dogs during a riot in ECW. He was one of a kind. The Wild-Eyed Southern Boy, and he left his mark on the wrestling business. I love Tracy Smothers. Rest in power Tracy, watch the cheese.”

“Tracy was a good man with a good heart,” said Prichard. “He was a true blue Wild-Eyed Southern Boy to the end. I’m glad we had fun times and crazy times together. Life is made up of moments and I’ll never forget the many I had with Tracy.”

“In life, you think you’re invincible,” Smothers told Sports Illustrated in February. “In wrestling, the show must go on. But this is the toughest thing I’ve ever gone through in my life.”

Tracy Smothers bravely fought the inevitable. And the show goes on.