Tigers’ Coach Smith is Coach of the Year

Ashley Hunter
ECB Publishing, Inc.

The Jefferson County Tigers may not have made it to the state championships this year, but Tiger Head Coach Leroy Smith is being recognized by the Florida Athletic Coaches Association (FACA) for the exceptional outcome of his coaching methods during the 2018 high school football season.
For the past two years, Coach Smith has overseen the improvements of the Jefferson County Tigers as the team’s head coach.
The task, Smith admitted, was a daunting one.
Jefferson County’s Tigers hadn’t been in the state championships for over five years, and the mindset of the athletes on the team was declining.
“When I accepted this job, I accepted the challenge,” said Smith in an interview at the end of the 2018 Football season. “This is my life; I love these kids.”
In just two short years, Smith managed to invest the time required to build pride in the faltering Tigers and for the first time in eight years, the Tigers made it within sight of being able to play in the state championship game.
While the Tigers were eventually defeated by the Port St. Joe Sharks, the team had been given a glimpse of what they were capable of as players and as a team.
Further, the team had shown their critics that the Jefferson County Tigers were still a force of power and that they were a team to eye in the upcoming seasons.
In the Class 1A-8A Football Division, the Jefferson Tigers made it in the State of Florida’s Top Ten stats for Receiving Yards - 2,959 (10th in the state), Tackles – 1,001 (10th in the state), and Total Return Yards - 1,138 (3rd in the state).
The team was also 11th in Passing Yards – 2, 962 and 17th in INTs – 18.
For team states within just the 1A team stats, the Jefferson Tigers claimed a few spots at the top as the #1 Team in Receiving Yards, Passing Yards, Tackles, INTs, and in Total Return Yards.
The Tigers were #5 in Total Yards and #4 in Sacks.
And this year, the Florida Athletic Coaches Association (FACA) designated Coach Leroy Smith as the District 3 FACA 1A Coach of the Year.
Under his guidance, the Jefferson Tigers have dug their heels into the turf of the field, have fought hard, have played hard, and have worked hard to improve their character both on the field, as well as off the field.
“I’m trying to teach them what it takes to be great, not for just one game,” said Coach Smith.
This will be Smith’s second year as a head coach, but he has been coaching for a total of nine years at other schools.
Leroy Smith got his start in the world of football as an athlete at in Gadsden County, where he grew up.
After graduating from high school, Smith went on to attend Florida State University through a football scholarship and was eventually picked up by the NFL to play professional football for the Chicago Bears as a Cornerback.
Throughout his football career, Smith has met or been instructed by recognized names in the realm of football, such as FSU’s Bobby Bowden or the NFL’s Ricky Smith (who was also from Quincy).
Through his interactions with men like Bowden or Ricky Smith, Coach Leroy Smith learned how to both play football and go through life as a professional winner, which are values and lessons he hopes to instill into the young athletes on his Jefferson County team.
As an athlete of Gadsden County, Leroy Smith knows the heritage that the Jefferson Tigers have carried onto the field with them. He played against some of Jefferson’s mightiest Tigers, and he expressed a desire to give his team the pride and the strength to continue that legacy on the field and in their own personal lives.
Earlier this year, at the beginning of the football season, Coach Smith said: “My goal is to do better than I did last year and make sure these guys stay on the right track to be successful young citizens.”