Missouri Native Joins Bulldog Volleyball Staff

As the assistant coach, Smith will assist Brandel in all phases of the program including on-floor coaching responsibilities and administrative functions.  He's the 12th assistant coach in the 28-year history of the FSU women's volleyball program and replaces Dominic Yoder, who spent one season at Ferris State.

"Jason brings a great deal of experience and enthusiasm to the position," Brandel said. "His knowledge of the game is outstanding and he will be able to help our program continue to become one of the top teams in the country."

This past season, Smith helped guide Iowa Western Community College to a 41-7 mark and a 10th place finish at the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division I National Tournament as an assistant coach. Smith spent one season with the Revivers after returning to coaching following a three-year stint as the director of telecommunications at Transamerica Life Insurance Company in Kansas City, Mo.

Prior to his corporate position, Smith spent three seasons as the head coach at Avila in Kansas City. During his three-year stint, each of his teams were nationally ranked in both passing and defensive statistics. In 1994, he directed the Eagles to a conference championship and a berth in the regional playoffs as a first-year head coach. That squad compiled a 13-1 regular-season conference record and was the nation's top-ranked passing team.

"He has been a head coach and is strong in all aspects of program development," Brandel said. "He will spend a great deal of his time recruiting for us. Jason has strong connections throughout the Midwest and will allow us to expand our recruiting base."

The 31-year old Smith got his collegiate coaching start as an assistant at Avila during the 1993 campaign when the Eagles advanced to the district playoffs. He has also served as a volunteer statistician for the United States men's national team.

Smith played collegiate volleyball for four years at Graceland College in Lamoni, Iowa, where he was a member of three regional championship teams and was a three-time all-region pick. During his final season in 1992, he was selected as the Most Valuable Player and served as a team captain.  Graceland claimed the 1991 national championship during his junior campaign.

A 1988 graduate of Truman High School in Independence, Mo., Smith earned a bachelor's degree in business and economics from Graceland in 1992.

Smith joins a Ferris State team which finished the 2000 campaign with a 21-9 mark. The Bulldogs recorded the best start in school history at 10-0 and reached the quarterfinals of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Tournament.

In compiling 21 victories, the Bulldogs recorded the 14th 20-win season in the 28-year history of Ferris State volleyball. Three of those 20-win campaigns have came under Brandel. The Bulldogs are 72-27 (.730) over the past three years and reached the NCAA Division II Great Lakes Regional Tournament in 1999.