Miami’s Roland Smith: “We’re Back and We’re Here to Stay”
Miami Head coach Mario Cristobal is the headline maker on the Hurricanes’ coaching staff, and rightfully so, but when it comes to football in Miami-Dade County, Roland Smith could be considered the Don Corleone because of playing and coaching in Miami's high school ranks.
Before joining the Hurricanes this spring, Smith had spent the last three decades absolutely dominating the high school ranks in Florida. In his 28 years of coaching at both Miami Northwestern and Miami Central, he helped bring home seven state titles in arguably the most talented county and division in the country. Smith leaves Miami Central on a high note, having completed a three-peat with the Rockets.
There may not be another head coach in Florida high school football as successful and as connected as Smith. It’s those two distinctions that make him perfect for this new role with the Canes. Dozens of the country’s top high school coaches can thank Smith for their start.
Smith has an undeniable eye for talent and his ability to communicate with and endear local players will be an invaluable asset in Miami’s recruiting strategies. He loves coaching, educating, and teaching life lessons to kids who are battling many of the same issues he once went through. It’s the reason he turned down so many college offers before this one.
Smith, an ex-Hurricane and two-time National Champion as a defensive back for “The U” has been working with Cristobal and the rest of the staff for about three months, but he wasn’t officially announced as Miami’s Director of High School Relations until earlier this week.
The former Cane said in a tweet about the decision to join his alma mater:
They say if you want to know the path to success, ask those who have been there before. That seems to be the theory for Miami as Smith joins a long list of fellow ex-champions on the Hurricanes coaching staff.
“When Coach Cristobal got a chance to become the Head Coach here at the University of Miami, he gave me a chance to come back home to the place where I went to school at. I couldn’t turn it down,” said Smith.
Having accomplished essentially everything at the prep level, including being the 2014 National Coach of the Year, the chance for him to return to “The U” and continue to uplift the community is exactly the journey that Smith has been waiting for.
“Having the opportunity to be here and to stay in the community,” explained the Canes’ newest hire. “To help bring this back to what it was when I played here was very important to me. That’s what made the decision a lot easier for me and my family because it was a different challenge.”
Smith, like so many other Miami fans and residents, is ready to climb the mountain once more. “It was the best four years of my life when I was in college, winning two national championships here.“ He also noted, “And I think this city and I think this town needs to experience this feeling again.”
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