Local teen is face of Super Bowl XLVI

CLAY CITY, Ind. (WTHI) - Many people are counting down the hours to Super Bowl XLVI in Indianapolis.

Those who have enjoyed the festivities in the big city may not have noticed some special work going on behind the scene. Most would have no idea that a local high school student is helping make this one of the greenest Super Bowls yet.

Kole Smith may look like your average high school senior, but his Super Bowl Host Committee jacket is just one thing that sets him apart.

"One student from every school corporation would be part of a group called the Green Corp," Smith explained to us.

"Kole was nominated, we wrote a letter, and then he was selected to represent Clay County," Smith’s principal at Clay City High School Jeff Bell said.

This was all part of an effort out of Indianapolis to make this Super Bowl unlike any other.

"They wanted this Super Bowl to be the most environmentally friendly one that they've ever had,” Smith shared.

Representing Clay County, Kole Smith found himself named one of few. He’s now a face of Super Bowl XLVI.

A Sophomore at the time he was nominated, Smith took his role very seriously, and he brought green living ideas back home.

"We've done highway clean ups, a couple waterway clean ups, I got a recycling program started.”

That's just the beginning. In his years with the Green Corp, Smith took the opportunity to get his whole school involved.

"I asked the {basketball} team if they would be interested in helping with this tree planting. The whole varsity team volunteered their time and we planted 16 trees before practice."

The work is something his high school takes pride in.

"It makes you feel good about the next generation, about what society is going to be like in the future," Mr. Bell said.

His efforts lead all the way to Indianapolis, where the Super Bowl committee offset more than a million pounds of carbon and counting. Plus as of now, they've conserved two and half million gallons of water.

For Kole Smith, this is only the beginning of his efforts to keep the environment clean.

"I really want to take the stuff I've learned and continue it on throughout my life."

As for Clay City Junior/Senior High School and Mr. Bell, they couldn't ask for a better face of the future.

"It's also important to teach kids, ‘What are you going to do for the next generation? What are you going to do to help people?’"

To find out more about the Green Corps work for the Super Bowl, visit the Green Corp website.

If you'd like to see more about Kole Smith and other volunteers representing the state as the "Faces of Super Bowl XLVI, you can go here .