SAN ANTONIO (May 1, 2020) – Our Lady of the Lake University (OLLU) has announced the resignation of cross-country and track and field assistant coach Terry Smith.
"Leaving the world of coaching has been an incredibly difficult decision," Smith said. "Leaving the program that Coach Stephen Sherman and I had built, with the help of a bunch of great student-athletes, makes it even more difficult. I will cherish the memories I have and miss coaching terribly, but my life is pulling back closer to family and for my wife, daughter, and soon to be son, and I cannot ignore that. My thanks to the OLLU coaching staff for putting up with me, as well as the track and field athletes."
Smith joined the coaching staff in May 2014, when the university added track and field teams and began competing in the spring of 2015. He came to OLLU from the University of the Incarnate Word (2012-2014), where as a graduate assistant/assistant coach, his areas were sprints, jumps and hurdles and his specified events were hurdles, strength and conditioning.
Athletic Director Shane Hurley commented, "Terry was an excellent coach of character who had an immense amount of knowledge and a likable personality. He, like Coach Sherman, was a positive mentor for our student-athletes, and he will be missed. The OLLU community wishes Terry and his family many blessings as he starts down a new career path and enjoys the opportunity to be a little closer to family."
The track and field teams have earned the following:
1 RRAC Championship – women
1 NAIA Scholar Team – women
99 All-Conference selections
58 Conference Scholar-Athletes
8 NAIA Scholar-Athletes
The cross-country teams have earned the following:
5 Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC) championships – women
5 RRAC championships – men
5 NAIA National Championships qualifier – women
5 NAIA National Championships qualifier – men
68 All-Conference selections
2 Freshman of the Year – women
8 Conference Scholar-Athletes
5 NAIA Scholar Team - women
A search for a new assistant coach will be underway soon.
In his first year at UIW, both the men's and women's 4x100 relay teams won conference titles and ran the NCAA Division II National Championship meet. Prior to UIW, Smith coached at McMurry University from 2011-2012. There, his areas were sprints, jumps and hurdles and his specified events were hurdles, strength and conditioning. He also was on the staff of the 2012 NCAA Division III Men's National Track and Field Team Champion.
Smith received a Bachelor of Arts in English from McMurry University. While there, he won multiple All-Conference awards from the American Southwest Conference. He also received the Sportsmanship Award in 2011 and the Top Track Athlete of the Year Award in 2011. He is an NCAA Division III five-time All-American and was on the National Championship Team in 2008. He set school records in the pentathlon and in the indoor 4x400 meter relay. He is a native of Crowell, Texas, where he was a five-sport letterman at Crowell High School. He was a Texas State bronze medalist in the 300-meter hurdles.