Going into the high school football season, Sam Houston head coach Chad Davis expressed concerns about the Broncos’ defensive secondary.

With junior Cooper Smith leading a ball-hawking defense, those concerns have disappeared.

“Going into the offseason, our question mark was the secondary — who was going to fill some roles and step up?” Davis said. “Going through spring and fall camp, we were really excited about what we had figured out, and those guys stepping up playing football.

“I think it is more of these kids are understanding their role and understanding what they are supposed to do and doing what we are asking them to do instead of doing their own things.”

Smith is coming off his second three-interception game in three weeks. He made two interceptions in the first half of a 35-27 win over Sam Houston that helped the Broncos build a 21-0 lead. He had a fourth pick negated by a penalty.

“Obviously it feels good,” Smith said. “I just play football. I get in there, I get excited.

“The first game against New Iberia, I had three interceptions. I played a lot of just safety. I didn’t play a lot of (man-to-man). I just read the quarterback and played my keys. I played the game right, and I really did the same thing against Sulphur.”

Smith is a two-sport athlete, but that wasn’t always the case. He focused on baseball during his junior high years but decided to return to the gridiron when he arrived at Sam Houston High School.

“I always thought about playing football, but when I got to high school I thought it was time to play football,” Smith said. “I played in Little League, and I dropped it in high school.

“My parents worried about me getting hurt at a young age, but once I got into high school, I think it became my decision. They were fine with me playing, and I was happy to play football. I like everything. I like going out there with the band playing. I like Friday nights. I like hearing the band playing and hearing the crowd and the announcers. I like everything about it. It is a different atmosphere.”

He has six picks halfway through the season and is ranked second in the state behind Holy Cross’ Tommy Ashby, according to MaxPreps.com. He led the Broncos with two interceptions last year.

“He played a lot last year,” Davis said. “He is the same kid as he was last year, he is just playing a lot more confident, obviously.

“Another year of experience goes a long way. He has a nose for the football. He had four, but one got taken away. So to have three interceptions in one football game, he is definitely doing what he is supposed to do. He is not getting caught up in the backfield. He is taking care of his responsibility.”

Opponents have managed four passing touchdowns against the Broncos’ secondary with 12 interceptions.

Smith has 21 tackles, two tackles for a loss, a fumble recovery and two broken-up passes and wouldn’t mind trying his hand at playing some wide receiver.

“I would have to talk to Coach Davis about that,” Smith said. “I would love to play receiver, but I think that is a lot and we have so much talent right now at receiver.

“I don’t think I am needed there. That would be pretty cool to play both ways.”

The Broncos are Southwest Louisiana’s lone undefeated team and face a tough stretch of games. They will play a pair of ranked teams over the next three weeks — at No. 7 Acadiana this week and at home against No. 6 Carencro on Oct. 20 — that could determine the District 3-5A championship. The Broncos’ final five opponents are a combined 21-4.