UNIVERSITY PARK It was one of those days for RaShaad Samples where nothing could go right. The former Skyline star WR had been trying to get to work at the University of Texas football complex when his car got a flat tire.

He had to try to figure out a way to get his car fixed. He had to get another ride, and he had to be at work. The entire day had been thrown off course before it even really started. Then, as he sat pissed in his Uber ride, Samples entire life changed. He saw that SMU coach Sonny Dykes was calling him.

Those two hadnt spoken in seven months. Not since the 24-year-old sat with Dykes for an introductory lunch at Pappadeaux in December before UTs Big 12 title game. The two talked about the landscape of Dallas-area football.

Dykes and Samples went their separate ways after that. When Dykes called this time in late July, only weeks before fall camp -- it was to offer Samples a job as an assistant coach.

Suddenly, the busted tire and the impending work day didnt seem too bad.

It was a bad really day, Samples said, and it went to really good.

Samples hire at SMU was, by any measure, incredibly risky. He had never been a true coach. He was replacing a defensive coach, and would only be able to assist on offense. Sure, everyone around him could see he had a promising future, but there wasnt any other FBS head coach quite ready to hire him as a core assistant yet.

College football programs are allowed 10 assistant coaches that have both on-field responsibilities and are allowed to go out and recruit on behalf of the program. In his role at Texas, he was only allowed to recruit on-campus, and serve as an analyst meaning he could not actually coach on the field.

But Dykes saw the potential for an ace recruiter. A young, relatable and personable face thats from Dallas and has deep ties to south Dallas and the top talent that comes from there. And, as SMU (9-1, 5-1 AAC) digs in to improve its local recruiting efforts, Dykes saw Samples as a face to lead that charge.

It seems as though, at least this season, that Samples is thought of as a recruiter first, and a coach second. He works with SMUs running backs and slot receivers, but is the only assistant coach without an assigned position.

So while his boss and his reputation believe him to be a recruiter first, its not how Samples views himself, or his future in this profession. Recruiting to him, provides an opportunity to prove himself as a coach.

We kind of said, Look, this fall your focus is going to be primarily recruiting, Dykes recalled, noting Samples will receive a position group to coach next year. And its something hes really good at. RaShaad is really good at relationships. Knows a lot of people. Grew up in Dallas. Hes known a lot of these kids since they played in youth football.

Samples grew up around football, and around coaching. One of the advantages he has now is that his father is Reginald Samples, the current Duncanville head coach.

Now, hes been charged with recruiting the parts of Dallas that SMU hasnt been able to tap into.

I think Sonny Dykes is showing a blueprint of how you get an ace recruiter to become not only an ace recruiter and ace coach, said Texas recruiting coordinator Bryan Carrington. Hes putting him on billboards. Hes flying to games on helicopters. I mean, Sonny Dykes is doing exactly what hes supposed to be doing.

From over here in Austin, I applaud how theyre using RaShaad.

Carrington recruited Samples to play for Houston in 2015. Samples was a talented WR, who was a superstar at Skyline so good that current SMU star wideout and DeSoto product James Proche said he grew up idolizing him. At 5-foot-11, Proche related to a player with a shorter stature and a huge game.

But Samples only played six college football games over the course of his career, which included stints at Oklahoma State and Houston. Concussions medically disqualified him in 2016, ending his once-promising playing career. That was a dark time for Samples, who initially declined head coach Tom Hermans request that he stay on in a coaching/mentorship capacity at Houston.

He was like, No, youre gonna do that, Samples recalled. That was good for me, and I knew it was something I wanted to do. I think I was in a rut at the time. But he did a good job of pushing me out of that rut, and saying, Hey, get over yourself.

Herman eventually brought Samples with him to Texas as part of his recruiting staff. And thats really where Samples reputation started to manifest.

It wasnt long before Samples got the itch to find an actual job. He applied everywhere he could looking at a lot of jobs at the FCS level. He got several job offers.

He was applying for jobs that I didnt feel like would be a good situation for him, said his father, Reginald Samples. But they were jobs that he was getting an opportunity to be a full-time coach. His attitude was Dad, I want to be a coach, I want to be a full-time coach, and Ive got to get my foot in the door somewhere.

This speaks to two things. One RaShaads desire to be a coach ahead of a recruiter. To coach a position. To have a group of players he was tasked with improving and taking care of. And secondly, it speaks to just how influential his father was. RaShaad turned down all the offers.

Reginald applauds SMUs hire, and not only because its his son. And not only because hes happy to have family close by the two plan to celebrate Reginalds birthday over steak next weekend.

Reginald applauds it because he has been publicly critical of SMUs lackluster pursuit of local talent in the past. And he knows what RaShaad can bring. He said the new coaching staff has gone to new lengths in its efforts to make inroads locally.

The expectation is SMU will lock up high-profile local commitments possibly very soon. As of now, Samples hasnt actually locked in a local commitment. But star athletes around the area are taking notice, and taking SMU more seriously.

He can relate to these kids around the Dallas area, said Courtland Ford, a Cedar Hill offensive tackle that Samples and SMU have been recruiting. And I mean, you look at him as a player. Kind of like an ex-player that like youve played with him before. Because he knows whats going on, you can relate.

Samples got the ride of his life last Friday night to see Ford play. Samples was invited in the teams recruiting helicopter to visit the areas top prospects with Dykes. First to Cedar Hill-DeSoto, then South Grand Prairie-Waxahachie, before finishing at Arlington-Sam Houston.

Before hopping on their ride for the night, Samples told Dykes, I know you do this all the time, but I dont. He promised to take a lot of pictures and videos, and soak in the moment and the scenes around him. Dykes laughed, and the two had a great time.

In that moment, Samples was like a tourist in his own city. Experiencing it from an angle, a height, a perspective that he hasnt yet done.

Samples has always just been a kid from Dallas. A kid who hung around his dads teams. A kid who played Pop Warner football at Pleasant Grove. A kid who played basketball at Oak Cliff. A kid who went to Layne Middle School and Skyline for high school.

South Dallas isnt just a recruiting area, its truly his home.

Now, though, hes not just a kid from Dallas. SMU is selling him as a legend returning home, the face of recruiting strategy of an untapped local market.

Its a sales pitch that is made tangible by a massive billboard with Samples arms crossed and a serious look on his face. That pitch is only validated when Samples hops on helicopter flights to make triumphant returns to the communities he grew up going to and living in.

Samples is back in town representing something thats bigger than him, but couldnt be done without him, either.

This is how the world sees him. And its been a conscious effort by SMU to make that the case. But for Samples in his own heart and mind, hes just a football coach and this year is only the start.

Its kind of weird to me, Samples said. People come up to me and say it or people write that hes a recruiting guru, or this, that and the other. Its like, man, if anything, Ive been dealing with football my whole life, coaching football my whole life.

Im a better coach than recruiter, and I dont think its close.

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SMU brought Ra'Shaad Samples home to be its ace Dallas recruiter. He wants to show he can be a great coach, too - The Dallas Morning News