Coaching Timeline
1997-98: Washington cross country and track and field volunteer assistant coach
1998-2002: Texas Tech head men's and women's cross country coach and assistant track and field coach
2002-05: Oklahoma State men's assistant coach
2006-present: Oklahoma State men's cross country head coach
Dec., 2008-present: Oklahoma State men's track and field head coach
2009-present: Oklahoma State director of cross country/track and field (men's and women's programs)
Regardless of what barometer is used to gauge a coaches success, Oklahoma State's Dave Smith comes out a winner.
Is it team success in competition? Check.
Under Smith, the Cowboy cross country team won its first-ever Big 12 Championship in 2008. The Cowboys have won the regional cross country crown and finished in the top-10 at the national meet every year under his watch. Additionally, the Pokes placed in the top 25 at the 2009 outdoor meet for the first time since 1985 in his first year as head track and field coach.
Is it the success of individuals in competition? Check.
German Fernandez won the 2009 NCAA title in the 1,500 meters and was the Big 12 individual cross country champion. He swept all of the Big 12's top awards, claiming the conference's male athlete of the year honors during both the indoor and outdoor seasons to go with his cross country crown. Ryan Vail is a four-time All-American under Smith, making him the most decorated OSU runner since John Wild more than a decade ago. Smith has coached four different Cowboys to All-America honors since 2007.
Is it success in the classroom? Check.
Every year under Smith's watch, Oklahoma State cross country has been recognized as an all-academic team by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association and in his first year as head track coach in 2009, five different Cowboy runners were honored with individual spots on the USTFCCCA's all-academic track and field team. Ryan Vail was an ESPN the Magazine/CoSIDA First-Team Academic All-America in both 2008 and 2009 to become the first repeat Academic All-American in OSU track history.
Smith arrived in Stillwater in 2002 and served as an assistant coach under Dick Weis for four years before being elevated to head men's cross country coach in 2006. Upon Weis' retirement following the 2008 cross country season, Smith was promoted to head men's track coach and in the summer of 2009, Smith assumed control of both the Cowboy and Cowgirl programs under the title of director of cross country and track and field.
Expectations were high for Smith's Cowboys during the 2008 cross country slate, as the Pokes were ranked No. 2 in the nation for most of the year. A team title at the Cowboy Jamboree highlighted the regular-season portion of the schedule. In the post-season, OSU claimed its first-ever Big 12 team title and fourth consecutive Midwest region crown before heading to the NCAA Championships. The story of the meet going in was freshman standout Fernandez, who ended up not crossing the finish line after sustaining a leg injury during the course of the race. In a testament to the depth of the squad, Smith's Cowboys still placed eighth even without any points coming from their top performer.
During the 2009 outdoor season - Smith's first as head coach - the Cowboys placed 25th in the final team standings and Fernandez won the 1,500 meter title. OSU's team finish was the best for a Cowboy team in 24 years and Fernandez became the Pokes' first NCAA champion since Paul Larkins in 1986. Additionally, Vail earned All-America honors in the 5,000 meters.
The 2008-09 season was also a success in the classroom, with Vail earning ESPN the Magazine/CoSIDA First-Team Academic All-America honors for the second straight year and the Cowboys earning all-academic team recognition by the USTFCCCA.
Smith guided the Cowboys to one of the finest seasons in school history in 2007 as the Pokes placed third in the team standings at the NCAA Cross Country Championships behind All-America performances from Vail and David Chirchir. In addition, Smith coached the Cowboys to their third straight NCAA Midwest Regional title.
In addition to All-Americans Vail and Chirchir, Smith's 2007 cross country squad featured all-region performers Matt Barnes-Smith, Sean Fleming, David Jankowski and Daniel Watts, with Vail, Chirchir, Fleming, Jankowski and Barnes-Smith earning all-Big 12 honors as well.
The Cowboys also succeeded in the classroom under Smith in 2007-08, as Vail was a first-team ESPN the Magazine Academic All-American and was joined on the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association's All-Academic team by Jankowski during the cross country season and by Jankowski, Barnes-Smith and Terry Josserand during the track and field season. As a team, OSU sported a combined grade point average above 3.0 to earn USTFCCCA All-Academic team honors in both cross country and track and field.
The 2008 track season was highlighted by Smith coaching Vail to a Big 12 indoor title in the 3,000 meters and by Vail following that up with All-America honors in the outdoor 5,000 meters with a fifth place finish at the NCAA Championships.
In his first season, Smith led the Pokes to the 2006 Midwest Regional championship, as OSU finished 16 points ahead of the second-place Kansas and 49 points ahead of third-place Iowa. Smith coached both Joe Gray (sixth place, 30:56.74) and David Jankowski (seventh place, 30:57.49) to top-10 finishes at the event, with Daniel Watts and Brian Ehlis both placing in the top 20.
Smith's Cowboys followed their Midwest Regional title up with a 10th-place finish at the 2006 NCAA Championships, with Gray leading the way with a 32nd-place finish at the event.
The success enjoyed by the Cowboys in 2006 also extended to the classroom, where the Pokes posted a team GPA of 3.442 and 22 of the 25 runners on the track and cross country roster finished the semester with a 3.00 grade point average or better. Eight Cowboys made Dean's Honor Roll (3.5-3.9 GPA) and three Cowboys made President's Honor Roll. Joseph Gray and Michael Breshears each finished with a 4.00 GPA, however they are not candidates for President's Honor Roll because they were in Graduate School at the time.
Smith coached Daniel Watts to Big 12 Newcomer of the Year honors in 2006, making him the first Cowboy ever to win the award.
Smith came to Stillwater from Texas Tech, where he was the head men's and women's cross country coach, as well as assistant track coach from 1998-2002. Prior to his stint at Tech, Smith was a volunteer assistant coach for the University of Washington track and cross country programs from 1997-1998. He was also the head coach of Club Northwest women's cross country and track those same years. Athletes that Smith has coached have won three NCAA Championships, 18 All-American awards, 19 Big 12 Championships, and a World University Games gold medal.
While competing collegiately at Michigan State, Smith was the Big Ten Conference champion in the 10,000m in 1993 and placed second in the 1,500m that season. He earned All-Big Ten honors four times in cross country and track during his career. Was also an 11-time Academic All-Big Ten selection and three-time Academic All-America selection. Smith also won the Big Ten Conference Medal of Honor in 1993.
Smith graduated from Michigan State in 1993 with a degree in fisheries and wildlife, and continued his education at the University of Washington, where he earned a Ph.D. in pharmacology in 2000.
