A state championship coach, Rick Smith amassed more than 400 wins during his three-decade career. 

His dedication to the sport began in the early 1970s, when, as the sixth of eight children, Rick saw his older brother Dave wrestle in the Prince George’s County finals. 

 When the lights went out and the spotlight focused on the athletes in the center of the mat, Rick knew that was something he wanted to do. The aggression and focus of these young men, who seemed like modern day gladiators, excited him and it was a great complement to football, the other sport Rick loved. 

 As a sophomore, Rick started on a very powerful High Point High School wrestling team, which won the 1977 Prince George’s County Dual Meet Championship and the Maryland State Championship. Rick finished his high school career as a Prince George’s County Champion and a two-time state qualifier with a 49-10-1 record. 

 After a short wrestling career at the University of Maryland, Rick finished his college days playing football at Salisbury State University and graduated in December 1986 with a degree in Communications.   

 In 1985, Rick committed his life to Jesus Christ and felt God calling him to become a teacher and coach at the high school level. Attending graduate school and working full time led Rick to his alma mater, High Point High School, where he began his coaching career in 1989. He then coached at Albert Einstein High School from 1990 to 1993 and finally settled at Paint Branch, where he served as the head wrestling coach until 2019. He retired from Montgomery County Public Schools in June 2022 after teaching social studies for 33 years. He coached football for 20 years and wrestling for 30. 

Rick considers among his greatest accomplishments, raising his four sons - Garrett, Jordan, Nolan, and Austin - with his wife Christy, and the opportunity to coach them in football and wrestling.

 His teams won 28 tournaments, two county championships, two regional dual meet titles, two regional tournament titles, and a state dual meet and state tournament championship.