Jeniece Smith is conflicted.

On one hand, she wants roller derby, the sport she loves, along with all that comes with it, to gain a mainstream following. On the other, she thinks its popularity is being hindered by its more theatrical elements: fake names and back stories, flamboyant outfits.

Her roller derby moniker is Jen Detta, by the way.

“If I was able to skate under my real name, I would,” said the journalism major. “I’d love to have the name Smith on the back of my jersey, instead of Jen Detta.”

Smith, who commutes to NIU from Rockford, is a self-proclaimed derby girl. She represents the person sitting next to you in class who, once her day at school is over, transforms from just a student into something totally different. Plus, she can kick your butt.

Smith, who plays for the Screw City Slammers as part of The Rockford Rage Women’s Roller Derby, explains her love for the unique sport sitting on an old, raggedy couch on one of the upper floors of Reavis Hall Monday afternoon.

She’s decked out in black: her purse, shoes, shirt, leather jacket, pants and even her hair are all the color of night. Smith’s blue eye shadow and light skin provide the only means of contrast. When she smiles, and she does so often, her deep dimples indent the center of her cheeks.

In 2006, Smith was taking the train from Chicago to Harvard after a weekend trip to the zoo. That’s when she ran into “a group of independent, fierce, rowdy women,” in other words, derby girls.

After hearing these women describe the sport, she was intrigued; that the sport involved roller skating, along with the women’s confident, rebellious attitudes, fascinated Smith.

She joined The Rockford Rage in October 2006, just a few months after the league was founded. It is now in the process of becoming sanctioned by the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association.

“In the last eight to 10 years, we’ve seen the rise of these very local, very homegrown leagues,” said assistant communication professor Bill Cassidy, who, during the sport’s heyday, was a big fan of roller derby.

Smith, 22, started taking the sport more seriously after tearing a knee ligament in July.

“Since she’s come back from injury, she’s been really motivated and determined to better herself, raise up her level of play a lot,” said Becky Genovese, 25, of Rockford, a derby girl who skates under the moniker Barbie Got Back.

Smith was a co-captain last season and plays on her league’s travel, or all-star, team, which starts play March 7.

“I used to consider it a hobby; now it’s an obsession,” she said. “I have a hard time finding boyfriends who aren’t terrified of me.”