Carl Smith

Quarterbacks Coach

Year with Browns: 4th
Year in NFL: 18th

The Cleveland Browns named Carl Smith as quarterbacks coach on January 22, 2009, marking his second stint with the club. He also served in the same capacity with the team from 2001-03. Smith brings to the Browns 35 years of coaching experience, including 19 in the NFL.

Smith lettered in football as a defensive back at Cal Poly State University from 1969-70 after transferring from Bakersfield College, where he played quarterback from 1966-67. He earned his bachelor’s (1971) and master’s (1972) degrees in physical education from Cal Poly State, as well as a teaching credential.

A native of Wasco, Calif., Smith and his wife, Dianne, have three sons, Tracy, Tyler and Nicholas, and a grandson, Troy.

Coaching Background:
1971	Cal Poly State University, graduate assistant
1972	University of Colorado, graduate assistant
1973	University of Colorado, linebackers coach
1974	University of Louisiana-Lafayette, defensive line coach
1975-76	University of Louisiana-Lafayette, defensive backs coach
1977-78	University of Louisiana-Lafayette, offensive coordinator/running backs coach
1979-80	Lamar University, offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach
1981	Lamar University, offensive coordinator/offensive line coach
1982	North Carolina State University, offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach
1983	Philadelphia Stars (USFL), special teams coach/tight ends coach
1984-85	Philadelphia/Baltimore Stars (USFL), quarterbacks/wide receivers coach
1986-96	New Orleans Saints, offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach
1997	New England Patriots, assistant head coach/quarterbacks coach
1998-99	New England Patriots, tight ends coach
2001-03	Cleveland Browns, quarterbacks coach
2004	University of Southern California, quarterbacks coach
2005-06	Jacksonville Jaguars, offensive coordinator

Of Smith’s 19 seasons as an NFL assistant, 13 have been spent as offensive coordinator. Most recently, he served in that role with the Jacksonville Jaguars from 2005-06. In 2006, Jacksonville’s offense ranked 10th in the league and third overall in rushing with an average of 158.8 yards per game. In 2005, the Jaguars offense racked up 361 points, 100 more than they did the previous season, as they compiled a regular season record of 12-4. In addition, the offense turned the ball over just 17 times that year, the second-lowest figure in the NFL, while their six interceptions led the NFL. Prior to joining the Jaguars, Smith spent the 2004 season as the quarterbacks coach at USC, where he mentored Heisman Trophy winner Matt Leinart as the Trojans won the national championship. For 20 of his last 21 seasons in the coaching profession, Smith was an assistant at the professional level, beginning with a three-year stint (1983-85) with the Philadelphia/Baltimore Stars of the USFL. His final two years there were spent as quarterbacks/wide receivers coach, and the Stars claimed the league title on both occasions. He moved on to the New Orleans Saints in 1986, serving as that team’s offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the next 11 seasons. During that time, the franchise recorded its first-ever winning season, earned its first playoff berth, won its first division title and qualified for the postseason on four occasions. From 1997-99, Smith was on the staff of the New England Patriots, first as assistant head coach/quarterbacks (1997) and then as tight ends coach (1998-99). In that ’97 season, quarterback Drew Bledsoe completed more than 60 percent of his passes, threw for more than 3,700 yards and amassed career-high figures for touchdown passes (28) and passer rating (87.7) as he was voted to the AFC Pro Bowl squad. In 1998, tight end Ben Coates led the team in receiving with 67 catches for 668 yards and six touchdowns, as he ranked second among NFL tight ends in receptions that year and was voted to the AFC Pro Bowl squad. Before getting into the professional ranks, Smith was an assistant at the collegiate level for 12 seasons, the final five as an offensive coordinator. This consisted of stops at Cal Poly State University (1971), Colorado (1972-73), Louisiana-Lafayette (1974-78), Lamar (1979-81) and North Carolina State (1982).