Frank Smith (Canadian football)

Frank Smith
Profile
PositionGuard
Personal information
Born1931 (1931)
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
DiedOctober 6, 2025 (aged 94)
Height6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight195 lb (88 kg)
Career information
CollegeOlympic College
Career history
1953Calgary Stampeders
1954Edmonton Eskimos
1955BC Lions
1956Winnipeg Blue Bombers
Awards and highlights

Frank Smith (1931 – October 6, 2025) was a Canadian professional football player and coach. He played professionally for the Edmonton Eskimos. He won the Grey Cup with them in 1954, 1955 and 1956. Smith attended Olympic College, where he played junior college football.[1]

Smith coached football at Eastern Washington University, Wenatchee Valley College, and Montana State University. In 1973, he took a position at the University of British Columbia, coaching until 1994, during which time he won five conference titles and Canadian Interuniversity Sport championships in 1982 and 1986. His final record with UBC was 126–90–4.[2] He was hired to the coaching staff of the BC Lions in 1997, 1998 and 2000 and also served on the coaching staff of the Saskatchewan Roughriders.[3] He was inducted in the UBC Sports Hall of Fame as a builder in 2012.[4][5]

Smith died on October 6, 2025, at the age of 94.[6][7]

Head coaching record

Junior college

Year Team Overall Conference Standing Bowl/playoffs
Wenatchee Valley Knights (Washington Junior College Conference / Washington Community College Conference) (1966–1967)
1966 Wenatchee Valley 3–6 1–5 6th
1967 Wenatchee Valley 3–6–1 1–5–1 7th
Wenatchee Valley: 6–12–1 2–10–1
Total: 6–12–1

References

  1. ^ "Francis Smith football statistics on StatsCrew.com".
  2. ^ "Frank Smith - Head coach 1974-1994" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on September 7, 2014.
  3. ^ "Frank Smith". December 2019.
  4. ^ "UBC Sports Hall of Fame :: Inductees". Archived from the original on September 7, 2014. Retrieved September 7, 2014.
  5. ^ "Canada.Com | Homepage | Canada.Com".
  6. ^ "UBC Thunderbirds mourn the loss of legendary football head coach Frank Smith". UBC Thunderbirds. October 6, 2025. Retrieved October 15, 2025.
  7. ^ Francis C. "Frank" Smith