CHAMPAIGN, IL - Illinois head football coach Lovie Smith named Rod Smith as the new Fighting Illini offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach. Smith comes to Champaign-Urbana after six seasons as co-offensive coordinator with the Arizona Wildcats.

"Rod Smith brings terrific and exciting offensive experience to our staff at Illinois," Lovie Smith said. "His background and development of dual-threat quarterbacks and multiple-threat offenses is the direction we are going here. Rod has developed explosive quarterback play and offensive performance at each of his coaching stops."

Smith is bringing more than 22 years of coaching experience to Illinois and has coached in 10 bowl games. Prior to his stop at Arizona, Smith was co-offensive coordinator at Indiana (2011), quarterbacks coach at Michigan (2008-10), quarterbacks coach at West Virginia (2007), offensive coordinator at South Florida (2005-06), and quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator at USF from 2001-04.

During Smith's tenure in Tucson, Arizona established a prolific offense, setting several single game and season records. In 2017, while helping the Wildcats to a 7-6 record and appearance in the Foster Farms Bowl, Smith helped lead an offense that averaged 41.3 points (5th nationally), 309.3 rushing yards, 180.2 passing yards and 489.5 total yards (12th nationally) per game. Wildcat quarterback Khalil Tate rushed for 1,411 yards (9.2 yards per carry), while completing 62 percent of his passes for 1,591 passing yards with 14 touchdowns.

Under Smith's tutelage from 2014-16, Arizona quarterback Anu Solomon completed his three-year playing career with the third-most passing touchdowns and fourth-most passing yards in UA history. In 2014, Solomon threw for 2,793 yards and 28 touchdowns, with only nine interceptions.

Smith coached quarterbacks under Rich Rodriquez at Michigan from 2008-10 and at West Virginia in 2007. He helped develop two of the most explosive signal callers in Rodriguez' offensive system, WVU's Pat White and Michigan's Denard Robinson.

Smith played under Rodriguez as a quarterback at Glenville State from 1993-96, where he earned his undergraduate degree in 1997. He was an All-American and team captain his senior year. Smith received a master's degree from Urbana University (Ohio) in 2000.

Smith's hire is pending approval by the UI Board of Trustees.

Rod Smith Coaching History

Smith File

Hometown: Franklin, W. Va.
College: Glenville State, 1997
Family: Wife, Charlene; Children: Alex and Sasha
Years in Coaching: 22