Kathryn Smith (American football)

Kathryn Smith (born 1985 or 1986) is an American football coach who most recently served as the special teams quality control coach for the Buffalo Bills. She was the first full-time female coach in NFL history. Smith was also the only woman to ever hold a full-time coaching position in the NFL until the San Francisco 49ers hired Katie Sowers in 2017.[2]

Kathryn Smith
Personal information
Born:1985/1986 (age 34–35)[1]
Career information
High school:Christian Brothers Academy
(DeWitt, New York)
College:St. John's (NY)
Career history
As coach:

Early life

Smith grew up in DeWitt, New York, a suburb of Syracuse, and attended the Christian Brothers Academy. At CBA she participated in lacrosse, swimming, and bowling.[1] After graduating from CBA in 2003 she went to St. John's University in New York City.[3] Smith majored in Sport Management and served as a student manager of the men's basketball team.[4] Smith graduated from St. John's in 2007.[1]

Career

Smith began interning for the New York Jets while attending St. John's, becoming a game-day/special events intern in 2003 and then a college scouting intern in 2005. She became a player personnel assistant in 2007. She then became an administrative assistant in 2014 and joined the Bills as an administrative assistant in 2015. The Bills promoted her to special teams quality control coach on January 20, 2016, replacing Michael Hamlin. She was the first woman to be a full-time coach in the NFL.[5] After the dismissal of Rex Ryan, Smith was not retained by new coach Sean McDermott heading into the 2017 season.[6]

See also

References
  1. Braziller, Zach (January 22, 2016). "How St. John's experience helped Kathryn Smith land historic job". New York Post. Retrieved January 22, 2016.
  2. Barnes, Katie (May 14, 2018). "5 things to know about 49ers assistant coach Katie Sowers". ESPN. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
  3. Domin, Hank (January 20, 2016). "Bills hire Kathryn Smith, a CBA grad, as first full-time female assistant in NFL". The Post-Standard. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
  4. "St. John's Celebrates Senior Day With Providence Sunday At The Garden". St. John's Red Storm. March 1, 2007. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
  5. Rodak, Mike (January 20, 2016). "Kathryn Smith hired by Bills as NFL's first full-time female coach". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
  6. Skurski, Jay (January 31, 2017). "Bills announce 14 assistant coaches will not return in 2017". The Buffalo News.
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