Lovie Smith

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Lovie Smith
Lovie Smith at the Chicago Bears 2007 Training Camp.
Date of birth	May 8, 1958 (1958-05-08) (age 50)
Place of birth	Gladewater, Texas
Position(s)	Head Coach
College	Tulsa
Career Highlights
Awards	AP NFL COY (2005) PFW NFL COY (2005)
Regular Season	36-28-0
Postseason	2-2
Career Record	38-30-0
Championships       Won	NFC North (2005, 2006) NFC Championship (2006)
Stats
Coaching Stats	Pro Football Reference
Coaching Stats	DatabaseFootball
Team(s) as a coach/administrator
1980 1981-1982 1983-1986 1987 1988-1991 1992 1993-1994 1995 1996-2000 2001-2003 2004-present	Big Sandy High School (defensive coordinator) Cascia Hall Prep (head coach) Tulsa (linebackers coach) Wisconsin (linebackers coach) Arizona State (linebackers coach) Kentucky (linebackers coach) Tennessee (defensive backs coach) Ohio State (defensive backs coach) Tampa Bay Buccaneers (linebackers coach) St. Louis Rams (defensive coordinator) Chicago Bears (head coach)

Lovie Lee Smith (born May 8, 1958 (1958-05-08) in Gladewater, Texas) is the head coach of the Chicago Bears professional football team of the NFL. Smith narrowly became the first African American coach to lead a team to the Super Bowl, only hours before Tony Dungy of the Indianapolis Colts became the second. Smith has been to the Super Bowl twice, as the defensive coordinator for the 2001 Saint Louis Rams and as the head coach for the Chicago Bears in 2006.

[edit] Earlier life

Smith was born in Gladewater and raised in Big Sandy, Texas.^[1] He was named after his great aunt, Lavana.^[2] During Smith's high school career in Big Sandy, he earned all-state honors for three years as a defensive end and linebacker. His team won three consecutive state championships in 1973-75, including a 0-0 tie in 1974 versus Celina High School of legendary coach G. A. Moore. In 1975, Big Sandy had one of the most dominant seasons in high school football history, as the defense allowed only 15 points (11 shutouts) all season, while the offense, featuring later Miami Dolphins running back David Overstreet, scored a then-national record 824 points.^[3]

Smith played college football at University of Tulsa under head coach John Cooper. He was a two-time All-American at linebacker and safety. After graduation he immediately pursued a coaching career. He was hired as defensive coordinator at his hometown high school in 1980. A year later he left to coach at Cascia Hall Preparatory School in Tulsa. By 1983, he began coaching linebackers on the college level, first at his alma mater Tulsa (1983–86), and then at University of Wisconsin-Madison (1987), Arizona State University (1988–91), and the University of Kentucky (1992). He also served as defensive backs coach at the University of Tennessee (1993–94), and Ohio State University (1995).

[edit] Professional career

Smith began his professional coaching career as a linebacker coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Under the guidance of Tony Dungy, Smith helped develop the Tampa 2 defense. After spending four years with Buccaneers, Smith was hired as the defensive coordinator of the St. Louis Rams under head coach Mike Martz. While in St. Louis, Lovie improved the Rams defense, that gave up a league-worst 29.4 points per game in 2000 to an average of 17.1 points in 2001. The Rams won the 2001 NFC Championship and advanced to Super Bowl XXXVI. The team ultimately lost to the New England Patriots in one of the biggest Super Bowl upsets of all time.^[4]

The Chicago Bears hired Smith as head coach in 2004, following the dismissal of Dick Jauron. He struggled during his first season with the Bears, as the installation of new offensive and defensive systems and a series of injuries, including a season-ending knee injury to starting quarterback Rex Grossman, contributed to a 5-11 record. Despite their poor offense, the Bears’ defense saw some major improvement, rising from 22nd in 2003 to 13th in 2004.

In 2005, history repeated itself when quarterback Rex Grossman suffered a serious injury during the preseason and missed a majority of the season.^[5][6] Despite Grossman's loss, Smith and Ron Rivera used a dominant defense to earn a 11-5 record, after starting the season with a 1-3 record. The Bears defense finished second in the league in terms of yardage, while allowing the fewest points in the league.

The Bears’ dramatic turn around in the 2005 season earned Smith national recognition. He won the Associated Press NFL Coach of the Year Award that year. After returning to the field following their first round bye, the Bears’ played the Carolina Panthers, with a fully healed Rex Grossman as quarterback. Both the Bears’ offense and defense struggled to keep up with the Panthers, and eventually lost, 29-21. Nevertheless, Smith and the Bears were optimistic about the future.^[5]

Smith and the Bears’ management drew criticism in April 2006, by trading away their first round pick, and drafting five defensive players.^[7] The preseason criticism increased when he named Grossman, who struggled to move the Bears’ offense during the preseason, as the Bears starting quarterback. Grossman led the Bears’ to seven consecutive victories, but struggled during the later portion of the season. Smith stood by Grossman through much criticism. The Bears finished the 2006 season with a 13-3 record, earning the NFC’s top playoff seed. The Bears finished the season with the NFL's second-ranked scoring offense, and fifth-ranked overall defense.^[8]

Smith coached the Bears to a 27-24 victory against the Seattle Seahawks during the 2006 Divisional Playoffs, winning the first playoff game of his career. Later, a 39-14 victory came against the New Orleans Saints at the NFC Championship. Smith became the first African American head coach to lead his team to a Super Bowl, just hours before Tony Dungy, his good friend and mentor, became the second. The friends together became the first two African Americans to head coach a team in the Super Bowl.^[9][10]The Bears lost Super Bowl XLI, 29-17, and Smith earned the somewhat dubious honor of being the first African American head coach to lose in the Super Bowl.^[11]

Following Chicago's successful season, Smith demanded a pay raise. The lowest-paid coach in the NFL in 2006 at $1.35 million, Smith would have earned $1.45 million in the final season of a four-year contract. After a stalemate in contract negotiations, the Bears signed Smith to a new four-year contract worth twenty-two million dollars on March 1.^[12] However, he parted with Defensive Coordinator Ron Rivera, who was not re-signed after his contract expired. Additionally, four other members' of Smith's coaching staff also left the team.^[13]

[edit] Personal life

Lovie is an active supporter of the American Diabetes Association (his mother is blind due to diabetes). In addition to participating in various events for the ADA, Smith also donates ten tickets to every Bears’ game to children suffering from diabetes. He and his wife are also the founders of the Lovie and MaryAnne Smith Foundation, a program which donates college tuition funds towards impoverished children.^[5] He was the Grand Marshal for the USG Sheetrock 400 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series race at Chicagoland Speedway on July 15, 2007.^[14]

Lovie and MaryAnne Smith have three children. Their names are Mikal, Matthew, and Miles. They also have twin grandsons named Malachi and Noah.^[5]

Lovie Smith is a devout Christian and has contributed to Brown's Chapel, his former Methodist church in Texas, every month even though he no longer resides in Texas.^[15]

[edit] Coaching record

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Official Bears Profile