More than a decade after leaving the University of Louisville, John L. Smith returned to the Commonwealth on Monday as head coach at Division II Kentucky State University.
Kentucky State president Raymond Burse said he expects Smith will “transform our football program,” one that last posted a winning record in 2011.
“I’m excited, excited, excited,” Smith said in a news release. “It’s a great opportunity, and Kentucky State is a football program with huge upside. It’s a program I look at and think there’s a lot we can do. A big part of that is being able to talk to President Burse and knowing he will support the program 100 percent. I think Kentucky State is a great fit for me, and I think I’ll be a great fit for Kentucky State.”
Smith, 67, most recently posted a 14-19 record in three seasons at Division II Fort Lewis College in Colorado. Head coaching stops at U of L, Michigan State and Arkansas have him at 150-113 during his career.
For the Cardinals, he immediately in 1998 turned around a program that went 1-10 the year before under Ron Cooper. After going 7-5, 7-5, 9-3, 11-2 and 7-6 in his five seasons at U of L, Smith left for Michigan State, where in 2003 he was named the Big Ten’s Coach of the Year. read more
