Smith was raised in Big Sandy, Texas, and was named after his great aunt, Lavana.[1]
Playing career
High school
During Smith's high school career at Big Sandy, he earned all-state honors for his three years as a defensive end and linebacker. His team won three consecutive state championships from 1973 to 1975, including a 0–0 tie in 1974 versus G. A. Moore's Celina. 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; Their offense, featuring eventual Miami Dolphins running back David Overstreet, scored a then-national record 824 points.[2][3]
After graduating from college, he immediately pursued a coaching career. In 1980, Smith was hired as defensive coordinator at his alma mater, Big Sandy High School. A year later, he left for Cascia Hall Preparatory School in Tulsa, where he coached defensive backs and wide receivers from 1981 to 1982.
Smith began his NFL coaching career as a linebacker coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Under the guidance of head coach Tony Dungy, he helped develop the Tampa 2 defense. After spending five years with the Buccaneers, Smith was hired as the defensive coordinator of the St. Louis Rams under head coach Mike Martz. While in St. Louis, Smith improved the Rams' defense, which went from giving up a league-worst 29.4 points per game in 2000, to an average of 17.1 points per game in 2001. The Rams won the NFC Championship Game 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]
Chicago Bears
2004–2006
Lovie Smith at the Chicago Bears 2007 training camp
The Chicago Bears hired Smith as head coach in 2004, following the dismissal of Dick Jauron. Upon arriving in Chicago, Smith stated he had three goals: beat the Green Bay Packers, win the NFC North, and win a Super Bowl.[5] His first season with the Bears was a struggle, from implementing new offensive and defensive systems, to a series of injuries, including a season-ending knee injury to starting quarterback Rex Grossman. The team finished with a 5–11 record.[6] Despite their poor offense, the Bears' defense saw significant improvement, rising from 22nd in 2003 to 13th in 2004.
In 2005, history repeated itself when Grossman suffered a serious injury during the preseason and missed a majority of the season.[7] In the absence of Grossman, Smith and defensive coordinator Ron Rivera structured a dominant defense and the timely play of backup quarterback Kyle Orton to earn an 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.[8]
The Bears' dramatic turnaround in the 2005 season earned Smith national recognition, which included earning the Associated PressNFL Coach of the Year Award. After returning to the field following their first round bye, the Bears played the Carolina Panthers, with a fully-healed Grossman at quarterback. Both the Bears' offense and defense struggled to keep up with the Panthers, and they eventually lost 29–21.[9]
Smith and the Bears' management drew criticism in April 2006 by trading away their first round pick, as well as drafting five defensive players.[10] The preseason criticism increased when he announced Grossman, who struggled to move the Bears' offense during the preseason, would remain the starting quarterback.[11] Grossman led the Bears to seven consecutive victories, but struggled during the later portion of the season. Despite his performance, Smith stood by Grossman, stating "Rex is our quarterback" when questioned by the media.[12] 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.[13]
Smith led the Bears to a 27–24 victory in overtime against the defending NFC champion, the Seattle Seahawks, during the 2006 Divisional Playoffs, securing the first playoff win of his career. The Bears went on to a 39–14 victory against the New Orleans Saints in the NFC Championship Game. Smith became the first Black head coach (and the second minority coach, behind Tom Flores) to lead his team to a Super Bowl. Hours later, the Indianapolis Colts' head coach, Tony Dungy, Smith's good friend and mentor, became the second. The colleagues became the first two African American head coaches to oppose each other in a Super Bowl.[14][15] The Bears went on to lose Super Bowl XLI 29–17.[16]
2007–2012
Smith with the Chicago Bears in 2009Smith at training camp, 2009
Following Chicago's successful season, Smith requested a pay raise. At $1.35 million, he was the lowest-paid coach in the NFL in 2006 Smith would have earned $1.45 million in the final season of his four-year contract. After a stalemate in contract negotiations, the Bears signed Smith to a new four-year contract worth $22 million on March 1.[17] However, he parted ways with defensive coordinator Ron Rivera, who was not re-signed after his contract expired. Additionally, four other members of Smith's coaching staff left the team as well.[18]
In 2007, Smith, confident in Rex Grossman's abilities, named him the team's starting quarterback over Kyle Orton and Brian Griese. After the team started the season with a 1–2 record, Smith announced that Griese would replace Grossman. Griese led the Bears to a 2–3 record,[19] but sustained an injury against the Oakland Raiders, which allowed Grossman to become the team's starting quarterback again. However, Grossman was later injured in the season, and was temporarily relieved by Griese. Smith ultimately allowed Orton to finish the remainder of the season, who led the Bears to a 2–1 record. The team's inconsistency at the quarterback position, and failure to establish a proper running game, contributed to the team's 7–9 finish. While the team finished last in the NFC North, Smith was pleased that the team ended the season by winning their last two games. Bob Babich, Rivera's replacement as the team's defensive coordinator, was also criticized for his play calling.
The next year, Smith and the Bears parted ways with their leading rusher Cedric Benson, as well as passer Griese, and receiver Bernard Berrian.[20] Smith declared Orton as the team's starting quarterback, who started the season with an upset victory over the Indianapolis Colts. The Bears went 2–2, with two overtime losses. Despite the team avoiding to fall below .500 for the remainder of the season, they missed the playoffs after losing their season finale to the Houston Texans. Smith was pleased with the success of Orton, who finished the season with a 79.6 quarterback rating, as well as rookie running back Matt Forte. After the season's conclusion, Smith demoted Babich and took over defensive play-calling responsibilities. He was also reunited with long-time friend, Rod Marinelli, who had lost his head coaching job with the Detroit Lions.[21]
In the 2009 offseason, Smith and the Bears' general manager Jerry Angelo had conflicting views on the future of the team's quarterback position. While Smith was content with Orton, Angelo was more interested in creating a long-term solution to the position. Angelo ultimately traded Orton and three draft picks (the Bears' 2009 and 2010 first-round draft picks, as well as their 2009 third-round pick) to the Denver Broncos for Jay Cutler.[22] The team's high expectations were quickly grounded when the Bears struggled in November, losing four of five games. The Bears were eliminated from the playoff race for the third consecutive year, after losing to the Green Bay Packers during a Week 14 matchup. The loss marked the first time that the Bears, under Lovie Smith, had ever lost two games to Green Bay in a single season.
A week after the loss to Green Bay, it was reported that, despite rumors about changes to the Bears coaching staff, Smith would remain the team's head coach.[23] Angelo refused to confirm these reports when addressing the media the following Sunday.[24] Smith finished out the season with consecutive wins against the Minnesota Vikings and the Detroit Lions. His victory over Detroit marked his 100th game as the team's head coach.[25]
After the 2009 season's conclusion, the Bears' organization announced that Smith would return. However, they fired offensive coordinator Ron Turner and three other offensive coaches. Smith was reunited with Turner's replacement, Mike Martz, who had been the head coach of the St. Louis Rams when Smith was their defensive coordinator. Smith was relieved of his defensive play-calling responsibilities, while Babich was officially demoted as the team's defensive coordinator.[26] Marinelli was promoted to the position.[27]
In 2011, the Bears went 7–3, but after losing Cutler to a broken thumb,[29] the Bears lost five straight games, a first in Smith's career,[30] finishing 8–8. At the end of the season, Angelo was fired, and Martz resigned.[31]Phil Emery, who worked under Smith during the 2004 season as an area scout for the Bears, became the new general manager.[32] Bears' offensive line coach Mike Tice replaced Martz at offensive coordinator.[33]
The Bears started the 2012 season on a promising note with a 7–1 record. The team's defense ranked first in takeaways, third in points allowed, and fifth in yards allowed. However, the team lost five of their next eight games. In Week 13 of the 2012 season, the Bears recorded their 300th takeaway under Smith.[34]
The Bears finished the season with a 10–6 record, but missed the playoffs for the fifth time in six years. On December 31, 2012, Smith was fired as head coach of the Chicago Bears. Smith departed the Bears with nine years of service, three playoff appearances, one Coach of the Year award, and one Super Bowl appearance.[35]
On January 7, 2014, Smith returned to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' as the 10th head coach in their franchise history. Regarding his first stint with the Buccaneers, Smith said, "We did lay a foundation for Tampa Bay Buccaneer football, there's a certain brand of football that you expected from us. That would be relentless, you play hard, physical, but there was a brand of football that you did get from us each week at Raymond James Stadium. It was hard for opponents to come in and win."[38][39] Smith also interviewed for the head coaching vacancies held by the Houston Texans[40] and the Detroit Lions,[41] prior to securing the role with the Buccaneers.
On January 6, 2016, Smith was fired after posting a record of 8–24 in his two years, including a 6–10 record in the 2015 season.[42][43]
University of Illinois
On March 7, 2016, Smith returned to college football and was named head coach for the University of Illinois, agreeing to a contract paying $21 million over six years.[44][45] In the 48 hours following the announcement of the Smith hire, the university sold over 2,000 new season tickets and more than 400 new student season tickets.[46]
When Smith's contract was approved by the University's Board of Trustees at their September 2016 meeting, $2 million of the salary was moved from the last two years of the contract and made payable in earlier years. Additionally, the contract provided for up to $8 million in performance bonuses.[47]
On October 19, 2019, the Fighting Illini had their most significant win since Smith took over as head coach with a 24–23 upset over then #6 Wisconsin. That season, Smith led the Fighting Illini to a 6–6 regular season record and they played their first bowl game since 2014. Smith was fired on December 13, 2020, after Illinois started the season with a 2–5 record. He finished with an overall record of 17–39 in five seasons at Illinois, including a 10–33 record in Big Ten Conference play.[48]
Houston Texans
Smith was hired on March 10, 2021, by the Houston Texans as their associate head coach and defensive coordinator under head coach David Culley, marking Smith's first time in the NFL since 2015, when he served as head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.[49] In Smith's first season leading the Texans' defense in 2021, Houston recorded 25 total takeaways, which tied for 10th in the NFL, while intercepting 3.1% of opponent passing attempts, the fifth-highest rate in the league.[50]
He was promoted to head coach on February 7, 2022.[51] Smith had previously interviewed for the Texans' head coaching job in December 2013, where they decided to hire Penn State head coach and former New England Patriots assistant Bill O'Brien on January 3, 2014.[52]
Smith was fired on January 8, 2023, after the Texans went 3–13–1 in the 2022 season.[53] The firing occurred hours after the Texans won their season finale against the Indianapolis Colts, which cost them the first overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft. Instead, the pick went to his former team, the Chicago Bears.[54]
Personal life
Smith and his wife, MaryAnne, have three sons.[55]
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The club joined the NFL in 1976 as an expansion team, along with the Seattle Seahawks, and played its first season in the American Football Conference (AFC) West division. Prior to the 1977 season, Tampa Bay switched conferences and divisions with Seattle, becoming a member of the NFC Central division. The Seahawks eventually rejoined the NFC in 2002, leaving the Buccaneers as the only NFL team not to play in their original conference. As a result of the league's realignment prior to the 2002 season, the Buccaneers joined three former NFC West teams to form the NFC South. The club is owned by the Glazer family and plays its home games at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa.
Rex Daniel Grossman III is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons, most notably with the Chicago Bears. Grossman played college football for the Florida Gators, where he was named AP College Football Player of the Year and won the 2002 Orange Bowl as a sophomore. He was selected by the Bears in the first round of the 2003 NFL Draft.
Kyle Raymond Orton is a former American football quarterback. He played college football for Purdue, where he started four straight bowl games. He was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the fourth round of the 2005 NFL Draft. After an injury to Bears starter Rex Grossman, Orton was pressed into service as the starting quarterback during his rookie year, starting the first 14 games of the 2005 season, but was replaced by Grossman for the playoffs that year. Orton did not play at all in 2006, and sparingly in 2007. He regained his starting job from Grossman in 2008, but the team finished a disappointing 9–7 and out of the playoffs. In the offseason of that year, he was traded to the Denver Broncos.
Brian David Griese is an American football coach and former quarterback who is the quarterbacks coach for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Denver Broncos in the third round of the 1998 NFL Draft. He played college football for the Michigan Wolverines.
Harold Wade Phillips is an American football coach who is currently the head coach of the San Antonio Brahmas of the United Football League (UFL). He has served as head coach of the Denver Broncos, Buffalo Bills, Dallas Cowboys, and Houston Roughnecks. He has also served as interim head coach for the New Orleans Saints, Atlanta Falcons, and the Houston Texans. Additionally, Phillips has long been considered to be among the best defensive coordinators in the NFL. In his long career, he has served as defensive coordinator in eight separate stints with seven different franchises. Multiple players under Phillips' system have won Defensive Player of the Year: Reggie White, Bryce Paup, Bruce Smith, J. J. Watt and Aaron Donald. Others under Phillips have won Defensive Rookie of the Year: Mike Croel and Shawne Merriman. In Phillips' lone Super Bowl victory, a defensive player would be named Super Bowl MVP: Von Miller.
Michael Martz is an American football coach. Best known for his coaching tenure with the St. Louis Rams of the National Football League (NFL), he served as the offensive coordinator for the Rams' Greatest Show on Turf offense in 1999 that led the franchise to its first Super Bowl title in Super Bowl XXXIV. Martz subsequently served as the head coach of the Rams from 2000 to 2005, where his teams reached the playoffs four times, won two division titles, and achieved a franchise-best 14–2 record in 2001 en route to an appearance in Super Bowl XXXVI.
Jeffrey Bertrand Blake is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons. Blake was a member of seven teams during his career, playing his longest stint with the Cincinnati Bengals from 1994 to 1999. Prior to his five seasons in Cincinnati, he was selected in the sixth round of the 1992 NFL Draft by the New York Jets, who he was a member of for two seasons. He spent the second half of his career playing for the New Orleans Saints from 2000 to 2001 and one season each with the Baltimore Ravens, Arizona Cardinals, Philadelphia Eagles, and Chicago Bears.
Richard Manuel Jauron is an American former professional football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL). He played eight seasons in the NFL as a safety, five with the Detroit Lions and three with the Cincinnati Bengals. Jauron served as the head coach the Chicago Bears from 1999 to 2003 and the Buffalo Bills from 2006 until November 2009. He was also the interim head coach for the Lions for the final five games of the 2005 season. Jauron was named the AP Coach of the Year in 2001 after leading the Bears to a 13–3 record.
The Chicago Bears American football franchise is a charter member of the National Football League (NFL), and has played in all of the league's 100 seasons. The team has captured nine NFL championships – eight NFL championships and one Super Bowl – second most all time behind the Green Bay Packers. The franchise has also recorded more victories than any other franchise (739), retired the most uniform numbers (14), and have the most members in the Pro Football Hall of Fame (29). The Bears have played in over a thousand games since becoming a charter member of the NFL in 1920.
Rodney Marinelli is a former American football coach. For 48 consecutive years, he had been a defensive coach for several college and professional teams, serving primarily as a defensive line coach when not assigned as coordinator. From 2006 until 2008, Marinelli was the head coach of the NFL's Detroit Lions, where he presided over their infamous winless 2008 season.
Jerry Angelo is a former American football executive who was the general manager for the National Football League's Chicago Bears from 2001 to 2011. Prior to joining the Bears, Angelo spent 14 years overseeing Tampa Bay Buccaneers' scouting department as their director of player personnel. Angelo graduated from Miami University in 1971.
The 2006 season was the Chicago Bears' 87th in the National Football League (NFL). The team improved on their 11–5 record from 2005 and finished with a 13–3 record; the best in the NFC. The Bears retained their NFC North divisional title, and won the NFC Championship against the New Orleans Saints on January 21, 2007. The Bears played the Indianapolis Colts in Super Bowl XLI, where they lost 29–17. The team finished the 2006 NFL season tied for second in points scored, and third in points allowed.
The 2007 Chicago Bears season was the franchise's 88th season in the National Football League (NFL). The season officially began on September 9, 2007, against the San Diego Chargers, and concluded on December 30 against the New Orleans Saints. The Bears entered the 2007 season as the National Football Conference (NFC) Champions and had hopes of returning to the Super Bowl, but instead finished the season with a disappointing 7–9 record, and missing the playoffs for the first time since 2004. The season marked the most recent time that the Bears swept the Green Bay Packers.
The 2009 Chicago Bears season was the franchise's 90th season overall in the National Football League (NFL). The Bears had looked to improve upon their 9–7 record from 2008 and return to the playoffs for the first time since the 2006 season, but failed to do so for the third consecutive season. The team finished 7–9, and third in the NFC North. This season was Lovie Smith's sixth season as the team's head coach. The Bears played all their home games at Soldier Field.
Jonathan David Hoke is an American football coach who is the Passing game coordinator and cornerbacks coach for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as the defensive coordinator at the University of Maryland, College Park from 2019 to 2020 and also served as the defensive backs coach for the Atlanta Falcons, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Houston Texans.
Lavonte Lamar David is an American football linebacker for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the University of Nebraska, and was selected by the Buccaneers in the second round of the 2012 NFL Draft. Since entering the NFL, David has been named to three All-Pro teams, one Pro Bowl appearance and won Super Bowl LV during the 2020 season, in a 31–9 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs.
Christopher Michael Conte is a former American football safety. He was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the third round of the 2011 NFL Draft. He played college football at California.
Mike Sullivan is an American football coach who is currently the senior offensive assistant for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He was the wide receivers coach for the New York Giants from 2004 to 2009 and the quarterbacks coach from 2010 to 2011, and the offensive coordinator for the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 2012 to 2013.
On October 16, 2006, during Week 6 of the National Football League (NFL) regular season, the Chicago Bears defeated the Arizona Cardinals, 24–23, at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. The undefeated Bears staged the "comeback of the year" against the 1-win Cardinals after trailing by 20 points at halftime. This game is the first game in which the Bears won after trailing by 20 or more points since 1987. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, it was the first win in Bears history in which they trailed by at least 20 points in the second half, and the Cardinals became the first team in NFL history to lose consecutive games in a season after being ahead by 14 or more points at the end of the first quarter in each of their games. The Bears also set an NFL record for the biggest comeback without scoring an offensive touchdown in league history. Cardinals quarterback Matt Leinart became the first quarterback in history to throw at least 2 touchdown passes in each of his first 2 career starts. The last time a team won after committing 6 turnovers was over 20 years prior.
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