Bio

Rod Smith enters his ninth season as defensive line coach at Gulf Coast with a national championship on his resume and long track record of elevating players to four-year schools.

The Bulldogs sent nine more D-linemen to the Next Level in 2025, raising Smith’s totals to 39 in eight years. Eight of the nine went to Division I schools, raising that total to 24 and two of his pupils have made it Power 4/5 teams.

The 2025 defense ranked seventh in the NJCAA in points (16.9 ppg), 9^th in passing defense (156.8 ypg) and 10^th in total defense (289.1 ypg). That helped lift Gulf Coast to its school-record seventh straight MACCC South title.

The 2024 Regulators ranked third in the conference in total yards (285.4 ypg), third in rushing yards (106.0 ypg) and third in sacks (28). Al Sandifer signed with Western Kentucky, Javen Gibson went to Old Dominion and Tylan Cole at Arkansas-Pine Bluff.

The 2023 Bulldogs defense was led by freshman Gibson, who finished sixth in the country with nine sacks and 16.5 tackles for loss. That tied for third most in sacks in the MGCCC record book and fourth most TFL.

In 2022, the Bulldogs sacked the quarterback 34 times, 10^th-most in the country.

In 2021, Gulf Coast was the fifth-stingiest team in the country against the pass (138.0 yards per game).

The 2020 Bulldogs ranked in the top 10 in total defense and had the nation’s sixth-ranked run defense.

The 2019 Gulf Coast team led the country in total defense (191.1 yards per game) and was third in passing defense (128.9 ypg) and fourth in rushing defense (60.9 ypg). The Regulators allowed only 12.3 points per game, second-best in the country.

The 2018 defense ranked second in the NJCAA in passing yards (116.8 ypg) and fifth in scoring defense (15.7 ppg). The Bulldogs allowed only six touchdowns passing.

Smith was an assistant overseeing the defensive line and linebackers and also working with special teams at Mississippi College from 2013-2017. He also served as Director of Operations for the Choctaws.

Before that, he was on the staff at Memphis, his alma mater, for five years. Smith served as a graduate assistant with linebackers and defensive backs from 2009 to 2013.

He played at Memphis from 2004-06, appearing in 28 games and making 13 starts. Smith’s playing career was cut short when he sustained a severe neck injury in a game against Arkansas State. He earned four letters, was team captain and won the Top Tiger Award in 2008.

Smith graduated in 2008 with a bachelor’s in education. He is married to Moriah, the student activities and wellness coordinator at the Perkinston Campus, and they have twin daughters Andrea and Bryiah, 13.

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