DeAndre Smith Position: Associate Head Coach - Running Backs Experience: Third Season Alma Mater: Missouri State '92

Promoted to associate head coach in March of 2007, DeAndre Smith enters his third season with the RedHawks. Smith came to Miami as the program's running game coordinator and running backs coach, and will continue to mentor the RedHawk running backs.

Smith made a quick impact on the Miami running game. In 2005, Brandon Murphy rushed for 1,070 yards in 10 games to rank 23rd nationally in rushing yards per game and earned second-team all-MAC honors, while an untested group of running backs as a whole cranked out six 100-yard rushing days and 14 rushing touchdowns.

Smith had previously been at Northern Illinois since 2001, where he had been a part of three MAC West Division Championships. Under his guidance, NIU produced four straight all-MAC running backs from 2001-04, including 2003 NFL Draft pick Michael Turner, who rushed for a league-record 1,915 yards in 2002. Turner led the MAC in rushing twice (2002-03), while sophomore Garrett Wolfe paced the league in 2004 and ranked fifth nationally with 1,656 yards.

During his four years at Northern Illinois, the Huskies posted a 33-14 mark and, in 2004, won the Silicon Valley Bowl.

Prior to joining the Huskies, Smith coached two seasons at Indiana State, where he served as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.

A graduate of Missouri State, Smith was a standout quarterback for the Bears, earning All-America honors and capturing National Offensive Player of the Year honors in 1990. Smith totaled 6,356 yards of total offense, including 2,276 rushing yards, and accounted for 58 touchdowns during his career as the Bears' signal-caller, earning the Gateway Conference Offensive Player of the Decade award for 1985-95.

After earning his degree in organizational communication from SMS in 1992, Smith went on to play professionally for the Calgary Stampeders of the Canadian Football League (1992) and in France (1993).

A native of St. Louis, Mo., Smith was a multi-sport athlete at Berkeley High School, where he competed in football, basketball and track.

Smith and his wife, Lori, reside in Oxford with their three children--Ashley, Ryan and Donovan.