Kevin Smith, a consensus All-America running back as a player at Central Florida, enters his first season at LSU and serves as the assistant head coach and running backs coach for the Tigers.
Smith joins the Tigers after spending the previous three seasons on Lane Kiffin’s staff at Ole Miss, a span that saw the Rebels enjoy the best season in program history in 2025, going 13-2 and reaching the semifinals of the College Football Playoffs.
In 2025, the performance of All-SEC running back Kewan Lacy went a long way in helping the Rebels set several school marks. Ole Miss’ 2025 offense led the SEC in total yards for the second straight season, averaging 489.7 total yards with a school-record 7,345 yards. The Rebels, behind Lacy, set the school record and paced the league with 39 rushing TDs.
In 2024, Ole Miss led the league and ranked No. 2 in the nation in total offense with 526.5 yards per game.
Lacy rushed for 1,567 yards – tying the school’s single-season record - in 2025, finishing No. 2 in the SEC and third nationally. His 24 rushing TDs – also a school-record - led the conference and ranked No. 2 in the nation. Lacy also set the school mark for all-purpose yards with 1,744.
Smith's running backs helped contribute to several team program records during the 2024 campaign, including yards per play (7.3) and total yards (6,845). Senior Henry Parrish Jr. led the way with 678 yards and 10 scores on 130 carries before a season-ending injury at Arkansas late in the season. Parrish Jr.'s best game came against Middle Tennessee, where he scored four touchdowns alongside 165 yards rushing.
In 2023, Smith’s running backs were part of a dynamic Rebel offense that pushed Ole Miss to its first 11-win season in program history, as well as a victory in the Peach Bowl. The Rebels were fifth in the SEC in rushing offense and scored 29 touchdowns on the ground, good for fifth in Ole Miss history.
Individually, the Rebel running backs were led by the powerful backfield duo of Quinshon Judkins and Ulysses Bentley IV. All-SEC honoree Judkins tallied his second consecutive 1,000-yard season with 1,158 yards and 15 TDs, making him one of eight in FBS history and one of two in SEC history alongside Herschel Walker with 1,000 yards and 15 rushing TDs across their freshman and sophomore seasons. Bentley added 540 yards and four scores on the ground, as well as 87 yards and a TD through the air.
Prior, Smith was the running backs coach at Miami during the 2022 season.
In 2021 in Oxford, three of Smith’s running backs ranked in the Top 25 of the Southeastern Conference in total rushing yards at the end of the regular season – Jerrion Early, Snoop Conner and Henry Parrish. Ole Miss ranked No. 12 in the FBS in rushing yards in 2021, amassing 2,829 yards on the ground for an average of 217.6 per game.
Smith made an immediate impact in Oxford with the SEC’s leading rushing attack in 2020. Ole Miss averaged 210.6 yards per game on the ground to top the conference and rank 26th nationally. Rebel running backs scored 19 touchdowns over the 10-game season. The sophomore duo of Jerrion Ealy and Snoop Conner accounted for 17 of those touchdowns with Ealy’s nine leading all Rebels and ranking sixth in the SEC. Under Smith’s guidance, Ealy earned second team All-SEC honors from Pro Football Focus.
Smith served as running backs coach for Kiffin at FAU from 2017-19, helping capture a pair of Conference USA titles. Prior to Smith’s arrival in Boca Raton, the Owls had tallied two seasons in which they had surpassed the 2,000-yard rushing mark as a team since the program started in 2001. Smith mentored the FAU running backs to three straight 2,000-yard rushing efforts.
Under Smith’s tutelage at FAU, Devin Singletary became the first running back in NCAA history to score 29 touchdowns in a season since Smith did it himself as a star at UCF. Singletary, whose 33 total TDs rank third all-time in single-season touchdowns, was named C-USA’s MVP in Smith’s first year at FAU.
The 2017 FAU running back ranked No. 6 nationally in rushing yards per game (285.3). The No. 6 national ranking was a jump of 45 spots from the previous year. Singletary and Kerrith Whyte, Jr. were both drafted in the 2019 NFL Draft.
Smith is no stranger to rushing records. The Miami native set 17 school rushing records at UCF, including an FBS single-season record with 450 carries and 13 100-yards performances in 2007.
After earning first team All-America honors his junior season at UCF, Smith was selected in the 2008 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions in the third round. He went on to play five years for the Lions, amassing 17 rushing touchdowns while battling injuries during his career.
As a rookie for the Lions in 2008, Smith played in all 16 games – starting 12 – and rushed for 976 yards and eight touchdowns. He followed that with 747 yards and four TDs in 2009. He capped his NFL career appearing in 54 games (31 starts) and with 2,346 rushing yards and 17 rushing TDs.
Smith graduated from UCF in 2015 with a degree in liberal studies. Smith and his wife Tisha have six children: Kevin Jr., Dennis, Kai, Dennisha, Summer and Paris.
Kevin Smith File
Year at LSU (in 2026-27): First
Birthdate: December 17, 1986
Hometown: Miami, Fla.
College: UCF, 2015
Wife: Tisha
Children: Kevin Jr., Dennis, Kai, Dennisha, Summer, Paris
Coaching Experience
2015-16 UCF (Intern, 2015; Quality Control, 2016)
2017-19 Florida Atlantic (Running Backs)
2020-21 Ole Miss (Running Backs)
2022 Miami (Running Backs)
2023-25 Ole Miss (Running Backs)
2026 LSU (Asst. Head Coach/Running Backs)