He played college football for the Ohio State Buckeyes, earning unanimous All-American honors and winning the Heisman Trophy in 2006.

In 1993, Smith was placed in foster care with Diane and Irvin White while his mother dealt with personal issues.

He earned good praise following his performance, and although it was relatively late in the recruiting process, Ohio State offered Smith a football scholarship.

In January 2006, he was named the Offensive MVP of the Fiesta Bowl, after leading the Buckeyes to a 34–20 win over the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

For many fans and analysts, Smith's performance against the Longhorns gave credibility to the preseason Heisman Trophy hype he had received.

[7] Smith was one of five finalists for the 2006 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, given to the top senior college quarterback.

[11] Smith's college football career came to an end on January 8, 2007, when he and the Ohio State Buckeyes were beaten by the Florida Gators in the 2007 BCS National Championship Game, 41–14.

[13] He beat out sophomore RB Darren McFadden (2nd) from Arkansas and senior QB Brady Quinn (3rd), from Notre Dame.

Troy Smith joined Les Horvath (1944), Vic Janowicz (1950), Howard "Hopalong" Cassady (1955), Archie Griffin (1974 and 1975), and Eddie George (1995) as Ohio State Heisman winners.

Despite winning the Heisman Trophy, Smith saw his draft stock drop considerably after the 41–14 loss to Florida in the 2007 BCS National Championship Game.

[21] Smith was quoted by the media urging his hometown team, the Cleveland Browns, to select him in the NFL Draft.

[25] On August 27, 2007 Drew Olson was released by the Baltimore Ravens elevating Smith to the third-string quarterback position.

"[26] Smith got his first regular season playing time in the fourth quarter of the home game against the Indianapolis Colts on December 9, 2007, completing three of five pass attempts and scrambling six yards for his first NFL touchdown in the 44–20 loss.

On December 20, 2007, Kyle Boller officially was considered the backup due to injury for the Week 16 game, giving Troy Smith his first professional start against the Seattle Seahawks.

[28] Smith was scheduled to start in the third preseason game of the 2008 season, but became ill with a rare disease called Lemierre's syndrome.

[29] Due to Smith's illness, rookie Joe Flacco was named to the Ravens' starting quarterback position.

[30] For the 2009 season, Flacco was named the starting quarterback for the second consecutive year, while Smith was active for only four of sixteen games.

After signing Marc Bulger as the team's backup to Joe Flacco, the Ravens released Smith on September 4.

He led the 49ers to an overtime victory by out-dueling Rams rookie Sam Bradford in a matchup of Heisman Trophy-winning quarterbacks.

This was mostly because new head coach Jim Harbaugh was expected to seek different options (though he eventually did choose to go with Alex Smith).

Smith's first UFL start came in Omaha's final game of the season, a 25–19 loss to the Sacramento Mountain Lions in the consolation round of the postseason.

[44] On August 14, 2013, Smith signed a two-year contract with the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League.

Smith finished his first year in the CFL with a completion percentage of 52.6%, 884 passing yards, nine touchdowns, and five interceptions, in six games played.

The act would require school districts to report on students' physical activity and to give health and nutritional information to children.