Ole Miss football officially announces return of Kevin Smith as running backs coach
Ole Miss has its new running backs coach but it is back with the old with head coach Lane Kiffin bringing back Kevin Smith.
Kiffin made the move official with an announcement on Wednesday. Smith returning fills the position that was open for less than two days after the departure of Marquel Blackwell to Texas A&M.
Smith returns to Oxford after spending a year in Miami as the Hurricanes running backs coach for the 2022 season.
“Coach Smith helped lay the foundation for the championship program that we are building here at Ole Miss, and we look forward to welcoming him back to our staff,” Kiffin said in a statement. “His credentials as a running back and running backs coach speak for themselves. His return along with the return of Quinshon (Judkins) and our other backs builds some amazing excitement to see what levels can be reached at that position.”
Prior to departing for South Beach, Smith was the running backs coach at Ole Miss for the 2020 and 2021 seasons. In Smith’s first season in Oxford he helped the Rebels become the top rushing attack in the Southeastern Conference with 210.6 yards per game and 2,106 total rushing yards.
Ole Miss had the second best run game in the SEC in 2021 with 217.6 yards per game and 2,829 total yards.
Smith was also crucial in Ole Miss landing Quinshon Judkins, helping Kiffin with the recruitment process.
This will be the first season Smith gets to coach Judkins as he left for Miami shortly after Judkins signed with Ole Miss January of last year.
There is some stability with Smith returning and familiarity for Kiffin. Before working together at Ole Miss Smith worked on Kiffin’s staff at Florida Atlantic from 2017 to 2019. Kiffin then brought Smith with him to Oxford.
Smith gets his first opportunity to hit the practice field with Ole Miss again on March 21 when the Rebels open up spring practices.
