Originally published Wednesday, November 28, 2007 at 12:00 AM
Smith says WSU post interests him
John L. Smith, who has been head football coach at four universities including Louisville and Michigan State, says he is "definitely interested"...
Seattle Times staff reporter
John L. Smith, who has been head football coach at four universities including Louisville and Michigan State, says he is "definitely interested" in the Washington State vacancy.
Smith, 59, has a 132-86 record at Idaho, Utah State, Louisville and Michigan State. He was fired last year after his fourth season at Michigan State, where he was 22-26 overall but was Big Ten coach of the year his first season.
"I spent years on the Palouse," Smith said. "That's where my kids grew up. It was a great place."
Smith was on Dennis Erickson's staffs at Idaho and WSU, then served as Idaho head coach from 1989 to 1994.
Smith is an adventurer and has run with the bulls at Pamplona, Spain, gone paragliding in Switzerland and climbed Mount Kilimanjaro.
At Michigan State, a message hanging on a wall behind his desk said: "Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away."
Smith can be frank about his interest in the WSU job because he is doing scouting for the St. Louis Rams.
Likely candidates currently in coaching jobs have to dance around the topic.
Tim Lappano, Washington offensive coordinator, said he knew nothing about talk linking him to the WSU opening but added he has yearned to be a head coach.
"I wanted to be a head coach 15 years ago."
Lappano was a WSU assistant from 1987 to 1991 under Dennis Erickson and Mike Price.
One former Cougars player known to be interested is Eastern Washington head coach Paul Wulff, whose I-AA Eagles are in the national quarterfinals this week.
![]()
Wulff, who was on the 1988 Aloha Bowl team, was diplomatic and said, "We're trying to win a national championship. I respect everyone at Washington State and in our program and our focus right now is our football team."
One of the likely top candidates is California defensive coordinator Bob Gregory, who grew up in Spokane and played at WSU in the mid-1980s.
Oklahoma co-offensive coordinator Kevin Sumlin, who was a graduate assistant at WSU, has been mentioned as a possible candidate.
Note
• Bill Doba's termination as Cougars coach, an event that athletic director Jim Sterk refused to call a firing and that Doba refused to call a resignation, has senior quarterback Alex Brink steaming.
Brink told reporters the decision to change coaches has the fingerprints of new president Elson S. Floyd all over it.
"It's unfortunate that the decision was made by somebody who's only been here for a few months," Brink said.
Copyright © 2007 The Seattle Times Company
UCLA makes unpopular trip to Pullman
UPDATE - 11:19 PM
Washington State begins Ken Bone era with easy victory
Myron Beck's versatility paying off for Washington State
Cougs trying to improve psychic bond between quarterbacks and receivers

Opening day at Crystal Mountain
Skiers crowded the slopes at Crystal Mountain for one of the resort's earliest openings.
nwjobs

Post a comment

Michelle Goodman blogs about work/life balance.
How to tell your office you're gravely ill
Post a comment
nwautos

Choosing a new sedan? Weigh the impact of your choice on your wallet and on the planet.
Post a comment
- Homeless man, 46, arrested in Greenwood arsons
- KVI talk radio host off the air as of Thursday
- Steve Kelley | ESPN's Bill Simmons gets us: He hates Clay Bennett, too
- Police investigate videotaped arrest
- Seattle U. Men's Hoops | Big recruit goes from Huskies to Redhawks
- Mariners sign Jack Wilson to 2-year contract
- Razor found in muffin an accident, 'mortified' baker says
- Suspect's family shaken by slaying of police officer
- Mountlake Terrace woman reports razor in muffin
- Man says he will protest city's gun ban by carrying gun into community center
- Police investigate videotaped arrest
635 - OSU game thread
517 - Seattle man to pack a pistol into community center to protest mayor's ban
343 - KVI talk radio host off the air as of Thursday
143 - Mariners sign Jack Wilson to 2-year contract
142 - NYC trial for 9/11 suspects poses risks
127 - Wright State game thread
97 - Band of advocates, activists now McGinn's likely insiders
92 - Rang says Locker not ready for NFL
85 - Licata looks at boosting traffic-ticket revenue
83
- Light rail to airport to begin Dec. 19
- Homeless man, 46, arrested in Greenwood arsons
- Ivar's undersea billboards a hoax devised as marketing ploy
- Light rail to airport to begin Dec. 19
- Steve Kelley | ESPN's Bill Simmons gets us: He hates Clay Bennett, too
- An 802.11n upgrade could make a big difference
- KVI talk radio host off the air as of Thursday
- Washington in race for federal education funds
- Police investigate videotaped arrest
- Goodwill's Glitter Sale is Nov. 14-15





