CJ Smith, a man for all seasons. (John Fisken, Shelli Trumbull, Charlotte Young and Sylvia Hurlburt photos)
Big things sometimes start quietly.
The first time I saw CJ Smith, he suddenly appeared, perched at the end of the Coupeville High School boys’ basketball bench one night, a couple of games into the 2013-2014 season.
Someone in the stands, a fellow player’s dad, said he had just transferred into the school, but no one knew much about him.
As the game went on, CJ (we didn’t even know his name that night) watched the court like a hawk, once in awhile murmuring a question or two to the guy next to him, then nodding, face impassive.
Little did we know at that moment, cloaked in stoic quietness, that we were seeing the birth of one of the best athletes to ever wear the red and black.
Later, we discovered he was a sophomore, and we wouldn’t see him in a game for close to two weeks, as he got up to speed on practices.
When he finally touched the court, wearing a Coupeville uniform for the first time, he didn’t come out screaming, or wildly waving.
He played calmly, coolly, under control, making sharp passes and even sharper cuts.
Captain Cool had arrived, and, for the next two-and-a-half years we got to witness a young man who handles his business as strongly as any Wolf I have witnessed.
CJ, who celebrates a birthday today and graduated from CHS last month, gave us two strong basketball seasons (he sat out his senior season to focus on schoolwork), two superb football campaigns and three dazzling baseball years.
Through it all, he was the picture of composure, a guy who didn’t seem to ever have a butterfly and never, ever flinched away from the big moment.
If he was nervous, if he had self-doubt, CJ hid it well from the fans.
When he was on the mound, whiffing hitters in great gobs, it was nearly impossible to tell if he was up 20-0 or trailing 1-0.
And that calmness, his sense of purpose, always seemed to settle his teammates down around him.
Which was especially helpful during his senior season, when most of his teammates were freshmen and sophomores.
Teaming with senior catcher Cole Payne and his brother, sophomore Hunter Smith, CJ led Coupeville to its first baseball league title in 25 years.
During that run there were many moments when the team could have fallen apart, but it didn’t, thanks in large part to its easygoing mound ace.
That serene spirit flows through CJ’s entire family.
Turns out we got a 5-for-1 deal, with CJ, Hunter and lil’ sis Scout all three-sport stars, while mom Charlotte and dad Chris are superb coaches.
As his prep career played out, Captain Cool was a rock for the Wolves, a talented athlete, but, more importantly, a quality dude through and through.
So happy birthday CJ, and thanks for letting us all be part of the ride for the last three years.
