NATCHITOCHES -- Pro Football Hall of Fame 1994 inductee Jackie Smith and College Football Hall of Fame 1996 inductee Gary Reasons will be recognized as the Exchange Bank Demon Greats of the Game Thursday evening as Northwestern State kicks off the 2014 football season in Turpin Stadium with a 6 o'clock game against Missouri State.
 
They played as Demons in two of five jersey numbers permanently retired by NSU. Reasons and Smith will be recognized during a timeout in the first quarter of Thursday's game.
 
Also during a first-quarter timeout, NSU director of athletics Greg Burke, who marks the 19^th anniversary of his first day as AD on Friday, will accept the ALC Ice Bucket Challenge issued by several people, including his administrative staff and the 1996 Southland Conference Offensive Player of the Year, former Washington Redskins receiver Patrick Palmer.
 
At halftime, the Spirit of Northwestern Marching Band's show will include a tribute and "spellout" honoring retiring NSU President Dr. Randy Webb.
 
The game will also be the first regular-season contest in Southland Conference history to be played using instant replay system to assist the game officiating crew. The Southland will become the first Division I FCS league to fully implement instant replay for home games of all of its conference teams and NSU is the first to play at home this season.
 
Smith, who wore No. 80 for the Demons, was a receiver and punter, and also a standout track athlete, from 1959-62. He led NSU in receiving for two seasons and helped the 1962 team win the Gulf States Conference championship before getting picked in the 10^th round of the 1963 NFL Draft by St. Louis.
 
In a 16-year NFL career, he redefined the tight end position and paved his road to the Pro Football Hall of Fame Canton. He's also in the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame and the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame – shrines that are located in the hometowns of the teams squaring off Thursday night.
 
Reasons, who donned No. 34 as a Demon, was a rangy 190-pounder when he arrived at NSU, but filled out and quickly emerged as a dynamic linebacker from 1980-83. He is the first three-time All-America selection in FCS history, making a then school-record 394 tackles in his career, including a record 172 as a senior.


He played nine NFL seasons, lining up on the New York Giants linebacker corps alongside Lawrence Taylor as the Giants won two Super Bowls in 1986 and 1991. He was the leading tackler (6) in Super Bowl XXV. He's also in the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame and is a longtime college football analyst for Fox Sports Southwest, working studio and Big XII Conference assignments.
 
The Demon Great of the Game, presented by Exchange Bank and Trust of Natchitoches, spotlights some of the most outstanding performers in the 105-year history of NSU football. Exchange Bank has been a key supporter of NSU Athletics throughout its long history as the oldest financial institution in Natchitoches.