Collinsville’s Clay Smith recognized as top girls soccer coach in Illinois
The Illinois High School State Soccer Coaches Association’s Coach of the Year award has typically been presented to an individual working north of Springfield, particularly in Chicago.
But Collinsville girls soccer coach Clay Smith bucked the trend last week when he received the annual award during the all-state and all-sectional banquets in Elmhurst.
“It was quite a shock. It was very surprising,” Smith said.
Smith, who guided the Kahoks (22-2-2) to a second-place finish in the Class 3A state tournament in Naperville, is the second metro-east coach to win the award since its inception in 1987. The only other metro-east honoree was Triad’s Mike Villa in 2003.
The program began in 1987 and has recognized a Coach of the Year in Illinois every year since then, with the exception of 1992.
It says a lot about the years we’ve had here in Collinsville. Not just this year, but a combination of the six years I’ve been here. We’ve been very successful. I’ve had great players. This award is not just for me. It’s for all the players I’ve coached. Good players make good coaches, and I’ve been very blessed with some great players that make me look good.
Collinsville girls soccer coach Clay Smith on being named Coach of the Year in Illinois
Smith became eligible to win the award after being named the Section 12 Coach of the Year. Fourteen section winners were pared to three, and Smith was among them.
“They didn’t tell you whether you won or lost,” Smith said, recalling the moments leading up to the announcement. “I was called up with all the other section coaches and they started reading the winner of the state Coach of the Year award and said something about the St. Louis area. My head kind of popped up and then I realized I had won the award.
“It says a lot about the years we’ve had here in Collinsville. Not just this year, but a combination of the six years I’ve been here. We’ve been very successful. I’ve had great players. This award is not just for me. It’s for all the players I’ve coached. Good players make good coaches, and I’ve been very blessed with some great players that make me look good. You can’t say enough about the players we’ve had. It’s been a phenomenal six years.”
No better honor
Smith, also the assistant athletics director at Collinsville, said it’s the most rewarding honor he has ever received, either as a player at Collinsville or a coach.
“Hands-down,” said Smith, who also was a finalist for the award in 2014.
I’ve said it before, but I’m not doing anything more special out on that field than any other coach in our (Southwestern) conference is doing. We all work hard. We all put in the same amount of time.
Collinsville girls soccer coach Clay Smith
But he deferred the credit.
“I’ve said it before, but I’m not doing anything more special out on that field than any other coach in our (Southwestern) conference is doing,” he said. “We all work hard. We all put in the same amount of time.
“I just have good players, smart players. And obviously, making it to the state tournament two years in a row helps.”
Buying in
Smith believes his players enjoy the style he prefers. The results confirm he’s probably right. In six years, the Kahoks have won six conference championships, five regionals, three sectionals and two super-sectionals.
“We play a very fast tempo, an in-your-face, we’re-going-to-go-at-you style,” he said. “I think the girls like that and we just have the right players to fit that personality. We like to possess the ball when we can, but at the same time, we like to play with numbers up top and go right at (teams). We’ve had great offensive scoring threats, so we can get that done.”
David Wilhelm: 618-239-2665, @DavidMWilhelm
This story was originally published June 13, 2016 at 6:30 PM with the headline "Collinsville’s Clay Smith recognized as top girls soccer coach in Illinois."