Sept. 1, 2003
BELLINGHAM, Wash. - Western Washington University football coach Rob Smith never thought he'd hang around Bellingham long enough to set career coaching records.
Smith enters his 15th season as the Viking head coach with 95 victories, the most of any coach in 100 years of football at the school. Not only that, he is tied for fourth in career victories earned at schools in the state of Washington, and has connections to all three of the men ahead of him.
"I knew very little about Western or Bellingham; I thought it would be a temporary move," said Smith. "I was reaching 30 years old, I was single, and it seemed like a good step, so I said why not."
His impact on Western's program has been remarkable. The Vikings, who open their year Thursday by hosting St. Cloud State, Minn., currently ride a string of 12 non-losing seasons - the previous best was six. Western has made five national playoff appearances under Smith, it had never made one before.
"It is a testament to his longevity and his being able to win over that time," said Western Director of Athletics Lynda Goodrich. "It's one thing to come into a program established as a winner, quite another to take a program without a winning tradition and turn it around to become one of the best programs in the country, and that's what Rob has done. To my mind, that's a far more difficult task, and he's done it while the program moved from the NAIA to NCAA Division II."
Smith came to Western as an assistant in 1987 after five years of teaching and coaching at Renton High School. At the time, the Vikings had endured nine consecutive losing seasons and had survived two attempts to shut down the program altogether. He became head coach in 1989, and has had just one losing season while posting a 95-46-1 record.
"Timing is everything in coaching and I came at the right time," said Smith. "I was fortunate that I came about the time Lynda Goodrich became athletic director and there was a real commitment made to the program."
Smith's in-state victory total is exceeded only by three coaching legends. Jim Owens had 99 triumphs for the University of Washington from 1957 to 1974, and his successor, Don James, led the Huskies to 153 in 18. Those two are exceeded only by Pacific Lutheran's Frosty Westering, who plans to retire at the end of this season. Westering enters 2003 with 250 victories since coming to PLU in 1972 among his 299 career triumphs.
Smith's links to the three fall in the same order. Owens initially recruited Smith when Smith was one of the state's top running backs at Hoquiam High School, although Smith actually became part of James' first recruiting class. Westering then became a rival coach for nearly a decade.
While Smith's contact with Owens was fleeting, the impact of Don James was more long-lasting. James had become the Husky coach shortly before Smith signed with UW. Smith went on to earn three letters as a fullback and played in the 1978 Rose Bowl.
"It's special just to be on a list that contains his name," Smith said. "I've got great respect for Coach James and the job he did at Washington."
In fact, Smith was the first UW player coached by James to become a collegiate head coach.
"He had a tremendous impact on me," Smith said of James. "Even now, some of the things he did while I was a player are things we're still using today."
Westering had a different sort of impact. Smith laughed when the PLU coach was mentioned.
"I'd already have 100 wins if it weren't for Frosty."
The Vikings and Lutes met 11 times between 1989 and 1997, including twice in NAIA Division II playoff games. Pacific Lutheran won the first seven, Western won the next three, and the Lutes took the final meeting, 46-44, in three overtimes, early in the 1997 season.
Smith said one of the most painful losses and one of the best victories of his time at Western both came against PLU. The loss was in 1991, when the Vikings entered the fourth quarter with a 14-point lead only to lose, 22-21, on a 72-yard touchdown pass with 42 seconds left. The triumph came in the opening round of the 1996 NAIA playoffs. Western grabbed a 21-20 overtime triumph by stopping a two-point conversion attempt at the goal line and went on to reach the NAIA Division II championship game.
"We looked at them and said 'That's a level we need to get to,'" Smith said. "Looking back, we had some great games."
Smith is presently tied for in-state victories with Tom Parry of arch-rival Central Washington, who the Vikings face twice this season, including a matchup at Seahawks Stadium on Oct. 4, in the "Battle in Seattle". Parry retired after the 1986 season.
Smith doesn't have much time to dwell on the past right now, not with nationally ranked St. Cloud State coming in off a 66-7 victory last week and led by quarterback Keith Heckendorf, one of three finalists last season for the Harlon Hill Trophy, given to the top player in NCAA Division II.
"It's difficult to reflect on right now, but it does make me think about all the players and coaches who have been a part of it.
"It means I've been here a while!"
