He played college baseball at Miami (OH) from 1985 to 1988 for head coach Jon Pavlisko, before pursuing a professional career from 1988 to 1990.

He then served as the head coach of the Miami RedHawks (1997–2005), the Indiana Hoosiers (2006–2014) and the Arizona State Sun Devils (2015–2021).

Smith was the head coach of Indiana from 2006 to 2014, during which time the Hoosiers appeared in three NCAA tournaments, advancing to the College World Series once.

[4][5] Early in his career, Smith was a junior college head coach and Division I assistant.

[4][6] After making a second NCAA tournament in 2005, Smith was hired to replace Bob Morgan as head coach of Indiana.

[11] After leading the Sun Devils to a 201–155 mark over seven years, Smith was fired after the 2021 season and replaced by Willie Bloomquist.