With the maintenance and restoration of two college football programs in his past, it isn't unusual for fifth-year University of Louisville head coach John L. Smith to refer to the path Cardinal football will take with words and phrases like "blue-collar," "hard-working," and "get after it." Born, raised and groomed professionally west of the Mississippi River, Smith's no-nonsense attitude and down-to-earth demeanor have been the ingredients for the unprecedented success of Cardinal football over the past four seasons. Few could expect the turnaround Smith and his staff orchestrated for the Cardinals since arriving on campus nearly five years ago. While there have been great stretches in the proud history of the Louisville football program, none can match what Smith and his staff have accomplished over the past four seasons. U of L left a 1-10 record from 1997 in the dust and put together back-to-back 7-4 regular season showings in `98 and `99 as the program started to gain momentum. The 2000 season saw the Cardinals jump to 9-2 overall and capture their first Conference USA title while Smith earned Conference USA Coach of the Year honors. The 2001 campaign, perhaps the finest in school history, saw the Cardinals become the first program in C-USA history to win back-to-back league titles on their way to a convincing 28-10 victory over BYU in the Liberty Bowl. The 2001 squad, which tallied a school-record 11 victories, found itself ranked among the Associated Press Top 25 for an unprecedented seven consecutive weeks to end the season. Six games on national television gave the Cards plenty of exposure and that translated into several post-season awards as a league-high 11 Cardinals were named to the all-conference team, including a league-high eight first-team selections. Smith, along with quarterback Dave Ragone and defensive end Dewayne White pulled off a clean sweep of the three major conference awards. With his second straight C-USA Coach of the Year honor in tow, Smith watched as Ragone and White became the first players from the same school to earn offensive and defensive player of the year honors in the same season. A native of Idaho Falls, Idaho, Smith owns a 103-54 career record as a head coach spanning 13 seasons. In those 13 seasons, Smith-coached teams hold an impressive 66-22 record in conference play. In his first campaign at Louisville, Smith guided the Cardinals to the top turnaround (six games) among Division I-A schools in 1998 and made Saturday afternoons fun again for U of L fans. He followed that by becoming the first coach in Cardinal football history to lead U of L to back-to-back bowl appearances with a trip to the `99 Humanitarian Bowl. In 2000, Smith led a surprising U of L club to its first Conference USA title, a trip to the Liberty Bowl and into the Top 25 for the first time in more than seven years. Following the season, Smith was rewarded with a seven-year contract extension as well as being honored by the Football Writers Association of America. The FWAA voted Smith one of three finalist for the prestigious Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award. The 2000 campaign saw Smith bring a more balanced Cardinal club to the field watching the U of L defense rise to the level of the previous two offenses, finishing the 2000 season rated No. 4 nationally against the run and No. 15 in total defense. The `00 Cardinals also led the nation in turnovers forced with 37 paced by Walter Camp All-America safety Anthony Floyd's 10 interceptions. Offensively, U of L remained one of the most dangerous units in Conference USA, totaling more than 35 points a contest while hitting paydirt a remarkable 73 percent of the time they were inside the opponents' 20-yard line. The '99 Cardinals were one of the nation's top offensive machines, finishing among the top 10 in scoring, passing and total offense for the second consecutive season. Six different Cardinals earned first-team all-Conference USA honors while Smith's first recruiting classes put five players on the all-freshman squad. The Cardinals finished the 1998 season as the nation's top-rated offense averaging 560 yards per game and putting 40.4 points per game on the scoreboard. The Cardinals topped the 50-point mark four times including three 60+ performances. Future NFL QB Chris Redman finished second in the nation in total offense at 400.9 yards per game as the Cardinals fielded the nation's third-ranked passing offense. Louisville broke or tied 84 school or Conference USA marks in Smith's initial season as the Cardinals were invited to play in their first bowl in four seasons. Prior to his arrival in the Derby City, Smith took over a Utah State program which recorded just two winning seasons in the 15 years prior to his arrival at the Logan, Utah campus and led the Aggies to a pair of consecutive winning marks in his final two seasons. Smith's USU teams owned records of 4-7, 6-5 and 6-5 with his '97 squad qualifying for the Humanitarian Bowl. Under his direction, the Aggies ranked among the top 20 nationally in three different offensive categories while rating 42nd nationally in rushing, averaging 168 yards per game. Utah State rated ninth in total offense averaging 448.5 yards per game, 14th in the nation in passing offense (280.5 ypg) and 19th nationally, scoring 33.6 points per game. Impressive offensive numbers became a trend at Utah State under Smith's direction. The Aggies moved among the nation's leaders in passing and total offense from Day One of the Smith era. In their first season with Smith's wide-open, one-back offense in 1995, the Aggies rated 14th in passing offense at 270.5 yards per game and 16th in total offense at 434.2 ypg. Smith's first USU club was picked seventh by coaches in the preseason polls but finished a surprising second with a 4-2 Big West mark, missing a chance to go to the Las Vegas Bowl, losing a 30-25 contest to Nevada. The '96 season proved no different with the Aggies posting the seventh-best passing offense in the nation at 317.5 ypg and the ninth-best offense overall at 468.5 yards per game. That squad tied for a share of the Big West Championship and posted an overall mark of 6-5 playing a non-conference schedule which featured games against Brigham Young, Texas Tech, Oklahoma State and Southern Miss. A defensive coordinator at Nevada, Idaho, Wyoming and Washington State prior to taking the top job at Idaho in 1989, Smith's Utah State defense ranked 61st in the nation overall and 25th versus the run during the 1997 season. Prior to his taking over the Utah State program, Smith spent six seasons as the top man at I-AA powerhouse Idaho where he posted a 46-21 record. Smith led the Vandals to five season-ending national rankings of No. 13 or higher in his six seasons. At Idaho, Smith tutored 12 first-team All-Americans including a pair of Walter Payton Award winners. Quarterbacks John Friesz (1989) and Doug Nussmeier (1993) captured the Payton Award, given annually to the top player in Division I-AA. The winningest coach in Idaho history, Smith led the Vandals to five appearances in the I-AA playoffs and ranked among the nation's leaders in total offense and scoring offense. In his first season at Idaho, the Vandals became the first team in Big Sky history to complete conference play undefeated with an 8-0 mark. Idaho finished the season rated fourth nationally with a 9-3 record, winning a school-record nine consecutive games. His 1990 team finished second in the nation in scoring, averaging 37.2 points and finished the year 9-4 before losing to eventual national champion Georgia Southern by one point in the I-AA quarterfinals. His '92 and '93 Idaho teams combined for a 20-6 mark and posted road victories at Division I opponents, Colorado State ('92) and intra-state rival Utah ('93). In Smith's final campaign as Vandal mentor in 1994, Idaho won its first seven games en route to a 9-3 record and yet another trip to the I-AA playoffs. The Vandals closed the Smith Era with a national ranking of six in the final polls. Prior to taking the Idaho position, Smith served two seasons as assistant head coach and defensive coordinator at Washington State under current Oregon State head coach Dennis Erickson. Smith's ties to Erickson date back to 1982 when he served under the same title at Idaho for Erickson for four seasons before moving onto Wyoming with Erickson in 1986. Coaching stops at Nevada (1977-81) and Montana (1972-76) laid the foundation for Smith's career. While at Nevada as defensive coordinator, Smith's 1980 unit led the nation in total defense, scoring defense and rushing defense. Smith began his coaching career in 1971 as an undergraduate assistant at his alma mater Weber State. The 53-year-old Smith graduated with a degree in physical education with a minor in math from Weber State in 1971 and received his master's of science degree in physical education from Montana. As a player at Weber State, Smith played linebacker and quarterback and earned Big Sky Conference scholar-athlete honors in 1971. Smith, who was born Nov. 15, 1948, is married to the former Diana Flora. They are the parents of three children -- Nicholas, Kayse, and Sam. Coaching Career:
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