Homer Smith (American football)
Homer Austin Smith (October 9, 1931 – April 10, 2011) was an American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at Davidson College (1965–1969), the University of the Pacific (1970–1971), and the United States Military Academy (1974–1978), compiling a career college football record 53–71–1 and a bowl record of 0–1. Smith was also the offensive coordinator at the University of California, Los Angeles (1972–1973, 1980–1986, 1990–1993), the University of Alabama (1988–1989, 1994–1995), and the University of Arizona (1996), and for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). In 1997, Smith was a finalist for the Broyles Award, given annually to the nation's top college football assistant coach.
Biographical details | |
---|---|
Born | Omaha, Nebraska | October 9, 1931
Died | April 10, 2011 79) Tuscaloosa, Alabama | (aged
Playing career | |
1951–1953 | Princeton |
Position(s) | Fullback |
Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
1957 | Stanford (JV) |
1958–1959 | Stanford (freshmen) |
1960 | Stanford (backfield) |
1961–1964 | Air Force (backfield) |
1965–1969 | Davidson |
1970–1971 | Pacific |
1972–1973 | UCLA (OC) |
1974–1978 | Army |
1980–1986 | UCLA (OC) |
1987 | Kansas City Chiefs (OC) |
1988–1989 | Alabama (OC) |
1990–1993 | UCLA (OC) |
1994–1995 | Alabama (OC) |
1996–1997 | Arizona (OC) |
Head coaching record | |
Overall | 53–71–1 |
Bowls | 0–1 |
Accomplishments and honors | |
Championships | |
1 SoCon (1969) |
Smith was named 1977 Eastern College Conference Coach of the Year and was presented an Outstanding Achievement Award by the American Football Coaches Association in 2006. As a player, he was a two-time All-East and All-Ivy League fullback at Princeton University. At Alabama, Smith is remembered for engineering the team's 62-point effort in a comeback to beat Ole Miss in 1989.
In addition to his undergraduate degree from Princeton, he also received post-graduate degrees from Stanford Business School and Harvard Divinity School.[1]
Head coaching record
Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Davidson Wildcats (Southern Conference) (1965–1969) | |||||||||
1965 | Davidson | 6–4 | 2–3 | T–5th | |||||
1966 | Davidson | 4–5 | 2–3 | 5th | |||||
1967 | Davidson | 4–5 | 1–5 | 8th | |||||
1968 | Davidson | 3–6 | 1–3 | 6th | |||||
1969 | Davidson | 7–4 | 5–1 | T–1st | L Tangerine | ||||
Davidson: | 24–24 | 11–15 | |||||||
Pacific Tigers (Pacific Coast Athletic Association) (1970–1971) | |||||||||
1970 | Pacific | 5–6 | 2–3 | T–4th | |||||
1971 | Pacific | 3–8 | 1–4 | 6th | |||||
Pacific: | 8–14 | 3–7 | |||||||
Army Cadets (NCAA Division I / I-A independent) (1974–1978) | |||||||||
1974 | Army | 3–8 | |||||||
1975 | Army | 2–9 | |||||||
1976 | Army | 5–6 | |||||||
1977 | Army | 7–4 | |||||||
1978 | Army | 4–6–1 | |||||||
Army: | 21–33–1 | ||||||||
Total: | 53–71–1 |
References
- https://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/15/sports/football/15smith.html?mtrref=www.google.com&gwh=D0665B475EB11E069662829D0151AEB6&gwt=pay
- "Homer Smith Dies at 79; Former UCLA Assistant Football Coach" Los Angeles Times Accessed April 13, 2011
- Former Arizona offensive coordinator Homer Smith dies at 79 Tucson Citizen April 11, 2011
- Homer Austin Smith, Tuscaloosa News, April 11, 2011