Smith’s Past and Present Meet on Friday
Feb 11, 2022 | Tennis, Sports Extra
By: D. Scott Fritchen
Jordan Smith lived with his mother, Sheila, and older brother, Frank, in inner city Memphis. Sheila worked while putting herself through graduate school, which meant she required summer daycare for 6-year-old Jordan. She enrolled her youngest son in summer camp at a local church. It opened his eyes to a variety of sports.
One sport, in particular, has remained a part of Jordan's life for more than 25 years.
"As random as could be," Jordan says, "I accidently fell into tennis."
Today, Smith, 33, serves as Kansas State head women's tennis coach, a position he's held for four years, and the current apex of a tennis coaching career that began shortly after he graduated from the University of Memphis with a political science degree in 2011.
K-State is 3-0 in the 2022 spring season after defeating South Dakota (6-1), Missouri State (7-0) and Arkansas (4-1) last Saturday at Body First Indoor Tennis Center in Manhattan.
The Wildcats face Memphis, 5-1, on Friday in Manhattan, which conjures strong memories for Smith, who details a journey drenched in determination from early lessons at Leftwich Tennis Center in Memphis to El Camino High School (Calif.) at Ventura College, to the University of Memphis, to Middle Tennessee State, and onto the Flint Hills and the diehard college town atmosphere that he cherishes.
"I was 9 and never realized I was good at tennis until a tennis director told my mother, 'I see some potential in your son,'" Smith says. "I just got into my mom's car with my racquet. I had no idea. We went to the Leftwich Tennis Center. I think that's when I realized I was getting better at the sport.
"I'm extremely grateful for all that she did and all of her sacrifices for my brother and I, and my overall development."
The sacrifice included moving from Memphis to California, which took some convincing by Sheila to her son, who was hesitant to leave his friends and the only place he knew. However, El Camino High School allowed a flexible workload through independent work study, which provided Jordan the opportunity to train at a tennis academy.
A stress fracture on the humerus during Smith's senior season derailed plans to attend Louisville on a scholarship, but Memphis head coach Paul Goebel never missed an opportunity to check in on Smith's progress. Although Smith had initially turned down Memphis to pursue Louisville, he appreciated the loyalty and became a Tiger.
"I had bet on myself that I could come out and play, so I took the fall semester off to get better and played in these minor-league pro tournaments throughout California and gained some recognition," Smith says. "I remembered who was there when I was injured and who was there when I started playing better again after the injury, and the one school who stuck with me was Memphis. I called Coach Goebel over Christmas break and said I wanted to come. I enrolled in January and started playing immediately."
Smith reached as high as a No. 47 ranking in doubles during the 2010 season. He compiled a 48-26 doubles record for the Tigers while collecting a pair of ITA tournament championships.
"Coaching was not on my radar whatsoever," Smith says. "I always had a passion for law and wanted to go to law school. Then The Racquet Club of Memphis reached out, and then the Memphis men's and women's team wanted me to help out as a graduate assistant. I was like, 'What is going on?' But the coaches had confidence in this 22-year-old kid out of college."
Smith coached many of his former Memphis teammates, and in some cases, his roommates. He gained their respect as a coach and they listened to his instruction — and even listened to his demands during conditioning drills without much resistance.
"It took me a few years," he says, "but that planted the seed for me to get going as a coach."
While he served as director of the junior tennis program at The Racquet Club, coaching 140 kids, Smith crossed paths with Middle Tennessee State head coach Jimmy Borendame, who recruited some of the kids. Their relationship grew. Eventually, Smith shared that he missed the high level of competitive tennis that college provided. In May 2014, Borendame phoned Smith with an opportunity. He hired Smith to serve as Middle Tennessee State assistant coach in 2014-15.
"Funny enough, while I was at Middle Tennessee State, Lee Walker, the Memphis women's coach who helped me get my start in college coaching right out of college, had moved on to TCU," Smith says. "He told me that K-State coach Danielle Steinberg was looking for an assistant coach. That paved the way for me to land an interview."
Steinberg hired Smith as an assistant coach in 2015, and he became associate head coach in January 2018. A well-known recruiter, Smith played a large role in bringing in the nation's No. 14 recruiting class to Manhattan for the 2017-18 season, according to TennisRecruiting.net. The national recruiting recognition was the highest of any Big 12 program in 2017 and the best in K-State history. He also helped guide K-State to a No. 28 ranking in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association poll and the Wildcats reached the 2018 NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2003.
Smith became interim head coach that June when Steinberg left to become Colorado head coach. K-State athletics director Gene Taylor and then-Executive Associate Athletics Director for External Operations Scott Garrett promoted Smith as head coach a month later.
After a national search, Taylor was convinced Smith was the perfect fit to take over the program.
"His experience in helping build our program into a NCAA Tournament team and his reputation around the Big 12 and among his peers set him apart from other candidates," Taylor said. "One of the up-and-coming coaches in the game, Jordan will also provide a continuity factor that will allow for a seamless transition, and we are looking forward to continuing to advance our program under his leadership."
Smith was ecstatic.
"I was thrilled," Smith said. "I was just turning 30. For me to be in that position was unreal. When they told me I had the job, I probably could've jumped through the roof."
Smith has helped K-State rise to new heights and garner national recognition, as the program has risen each year under his watch. The Wildcats posted an 8-4 mark in non-conference play just before the 2019-20 campaign was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Wildcats posted 37 total victories in dual match play for the 2020 spring campaign.
He helped Maria Linares to earn 2018 Big 12 Freshman of the Year honors while Margot Decker earned 2018 Second Team All-Big 12 honors in both singles and doubles with her playing partner, Carolina Costamagna. He also helped Anna Turco to earn 2019 Second Team All-Big 12 honors in singles.
In 2019, freshman Karine-Marion Job earned Big 12 Newcomer of the Week honors. Job, 2-0 in singles and 1-0 in doubles, is one of five seniors slated to compete against Memphis on Friday.
"I enjoy the time I have with the players," Smith says. "The four to five years might seem long, but it is not. It goes by fast. As a coach, you want to help them grow. It doesn't matter how long it takes, you just want to be there to see them overcome themselves or have a good moment or highlight. That's the sweetest thing."
He'll hope for several sweet moments against his alma mater on Friday.
"For me, it's not about the name as much as I just want to see if we can build a schedule that'll help us to make the NCAA Tournament," he says. "Memphis has built their program to where they can definitely get some good wins under their belt and get an established ranking, which will benefit us if we can play well and get a win over them."
"I don't shy away since it's my alma mater. If playing them is going to help us be successful as a program, and they're willing to play, I'm going to put my team out there. Our goal is to make the postseason. We keep it simple. We're going to have fun, communicate, support our teammates, and give our best each day."
In the end, that's what Smith has been about all along since first picking up that racquet in a Memphis church daycare at age 6. He wanted to have fun and give it his best.
What a journey it's been.
Jordan Smith lived with his mother, Sheila, and older brother, Frank, in inner city Memphis. Sheila worked while putting herself through graduate school, which meant she required summer daycare for 6-year-old Jordan. She enrolled her youngest son in summer camp at a local church. It opened his eyes to a variety of sports.
One sport, in particular, has remained a part of Jordan's life for more than 25 years.
"As random as could be," Jordan says, "I accidently fell into tennis."
Today, Smith, 33, serves as Kansas State head women's tennis coach, a position he's held for four years, and the current apex of a tennis coaching career that began shortly after he graduated from the University of Memphis with a political science degree in 2011.
K-State is 3-0 in the 2022 spring season after defeating South Dakota (6-1), Missouri State (7-0) and Arkansas (4-1) last Saturday at Body First Indoor Tennis Center in Manhattan.
The Wildcats face Memphis, 5-1, on Friday in Manhattan, which conjures strong memories for Smith, who details a journey drenched in determination from early lessons at Leftwich Tennis Center in Memphis to El Camino High School (Calif.) at Ventura College, to the University of Memphis, to Middle Tennessee State, and onto the Flint Hills and the diehard college town atmosphere that he cherishes.
"I was 9 and never realized I was good at tennis until a tennis director told my mother, 'I see some potential in your son,'" Smith says. "I just got into my mom's car with my racquet. I had no idea. We went to the Leftwich Tennis Center. I think that's when I realized I was getting better at the sport.
"I'm extremely grateful for all that she did and all of her sacrifices for my brother and I, and my overall development."
The sacrifice included moving from Memphis to California, which took some convincing by Sheila to her son, who was hesitant to leave his friends and the only place he knew. However, El Camino High School allowed a flexible workload through independent work study, which provided Jordan the opportunity to train at a tennis academy.
A stress fracture on the humerus during Smith's senior season derailed plans to attend Louisville on a scholarship, but Memphis head coach Paul Goebel never missed an opportunity to check in on Smith's progress. Although Smith had initially turned down Memphis to pursue Louisville, he appreciated the loyalty and became a Tiger.
"I had bet on myself that I could come out and play, so I took the fall semester off to get better and played in these minor-league pro tournaments throughout California and gained some recognition," Smith says. "I remembered who was there when I was injured and who was there when I started playing better again after the injury, and the one school who stuck with me was Memphis. I called Coach Goebel over Christmas break and said I wanted to come. I enrolled in January and started playing immediately."
Smith reached as high as a No. 47 ranking in doubles during the 2010 season. He compiled a 48-26 doubles record for the Tigers while collecting a pair of ITA tournament championships.
"Coaching was not on my radar whatsoever," Smith says. "I always had a passion for law and wanted to go to law school. Then The Racquet Club of Memphis reached out, and then the Memphis men's and women's team wanted me to help out as a graduate assistant. I was like, 'What is going on?' But the coaches had confidence in this 22-year-old kid out of college."
Smith coached many of his former Memphis teammates, and in some cases, his roommates. He gained their respect as a coach and they listened to his instruction — and even listened to his demands during conditioning drills without much resistance.
"It took me a few years," he says, "but that planted the seed for me to get going as a coach."
While he served as director of the junior tennis program at The Racquet Club, coaching 140 kids, Smith crossed paths with Middle Tennessee State head coach Jimmy Borendame, who recruited some of the kids. Their relationship grew. Eventually, Smith shared that he missed the high level of competitive tennis that college provided. In May 2014, Borendame phoned Smith with an opportunity. He hired Smith to serve as Middle Tennessee State assistant coach in 2014-15.
"Funny enough, while I was at Middle Tennessee State, Lee Walker, the Memphis women's coach who helped me get my start in college coaching right out of college, had moved on to TCU," Smith says. "He told me that K-State coach Danielle Steinberg was looking for an assistant coach. That paved the way for me to land an interview."
Steinberg hired Smith as an assistant coach in 2015, and he became associate head coach in January 2018. A well-known recruiter, Smith played a large role in bringing in the nation's No. 14 recruiting class to Manhattan for the 2017-18 season, according to TennisRecruiting.net. The national recruiting recognition was the highest of any Big 12 program in 2017 and the best in K-State history. He also helped guide K-State to a No. 28 ranking in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association poll and the Wildcats reached the 2018 NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2003.
Smith became interim head coach that June when Steinberg left to become Colorado head coach. K-State athletics director Gene Taylor and then-Executive Associate Athletics Director for External Operations Scott Garrett promoted Smith as head coach a month later.
After a national search, Taylor was convinced Smith was the perfect fit to take over the program.
"His experience in helping build our program into a NCAA Tournament team and his reputation around the Big 12 and among his peers set him apart from other candidates," Taylor said. "One of the up-and-coming coaches in the game, Jordan will also provide a continuity factor that will allow for a seamless transition, and we are looking forward to continuing to advance our program under his leadership."
Smith was ecstatic.
"I was thrilled," Smith said. "I was just turning 30. For me to be in that position was unreal. When they told me I had the job, I probably could've jumped through the roof."
Smith has helped K-State rise to new heights and garner national recognition, as the program has risen each year under his watch. The Wildcats posted an 8-4 mark in non-conference play just before the 2019-20 campaign was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Wildcats posted 37 total victories in dual match play for the 2020 spring campaign.
He helped Maria Linares to earn 2018 Big 12 Freshman of the Year honors while Margot Decker earned 2018 Second Team All-Big 12 honors in both singles and doubles with her playing partner, Carolina Costamagna. He also helped Anna Turco to earn 2019 Second Team All-Big 12 honors in singles.
In 2019, freshman Karine-Marion Job earned Big 12 Newcomer of the Week honors. Job, 2-0 in singles and 1-0 in doubles, is one of five seniors slated to compete against Memphis on Friday.
"I enjoy the time I have with the players," Smith says. "The four to five years might seem long, but it is not. It goes by fast. As a coach, you want to help them grow. It doesn't matter how long it takes, you just want to be there to see them overcome themselves or have a good moment or highlight. That's the sweetest thing."
He'll hope for several sweet moments against his alma mater on Friday.
"For me, it's not about the name as much as I just want to see if we can build a schedule that'll help us to make the NCAA Tournament," he says. "Memphis has built their program to where they can definitely get some good wins under their belt and get an established ranking, which will benefit us if we can play well and get a win over them."
"I don't shy away since it's my alma mater. If playing them is going to help us be successful as a program, and they're willing to play, I'm going to put my team out there. Our goal is to make the postseason. We keep it simple. We're going to have fun, communicate, support our teammates, and give our best each day."
In the end, that's what Smith has been about all along since first picking up that racquet in a Memphis church daycare at age 6. He wanted to have fun and give it his best.
What a journey it's been.
Players Mentioned
Tuesday, July 21
Tuesday, July 21
Tuesday, July 21
Friday, July 17
