Former WR Smith to enter Jags’ ring of honor

12:59 PM ET

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. —- When Jimmy Smith answered a call from an unfamiliar number on Saturday and heard Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shad Khan’s voice, he knew the moment he had been waiting for had finally arrived.

He was going to be inducted into the Pride of the Jaguars, which is what the team has named its ring of honor.

“My heart started beating fast,” Smith remembered. “I couldn’t catch my breath.”

Jimmy Smith, 47, is the Jaguars’ all-time leader in receptions (862), receiving yards (12,287) and receiving touchdowns (67). He also holds the team record for consecutive games with a reception (86). Sporting News/Getty Images

The induction ceremony will take place on Dec. 11, when the Jaguars play host to the Minnesota Vikings. He will become the sixth person inducted into the Pride, joining Tony Boselli, Wayne and Delores Weaver, Fred Taylor, and Mark Brunell.

Smith had hoped that he wouldn’t have had to wait this long after his career ended in 2006 to get that call, but he understands why the team waited 10 years before giving him its highest honor. Five arrests for DUI, drugs, and firearms, serving several years in prison, and being an admitted cocaine addiction made it hard for the Jaguars to invite him to join the Pride.

However, Smith has avoided trouble since his release from prison in Mississippi in 2013 and said he’s working hard to make sure he continues to do so.

“I thought [the Pride induction] would have happened sooner but God has a plan for us all,” Smith said. “Lately it just seems like since I turned my life over to God I’ve been getting these gifts from God and this is one of them. The timing is perfect because had I not gone through some of these off–field issues I wouldn’t be the person I am today.

“I’ve definitely matured and I hope this could be an inspiration to someone else. We all have problems. Everybody has issues and has problems. It’s just, how do you deal with those problems and how do you come out of it? The work is not over with me by any means.”

Smith said he still battles his drug addiction, but he’s proud of how he has handled that fight and he hopes others in a similar situation draw strength from his example.

“Struggling with an addition, it’s every day,” Smith said. “It’s not like you’re hooked this day and it’s gone tomorrow. I have to live …

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