With its 81-67 GEICO Nationals quarterfinal loss to current FAB 50 N0. 4 Link Academy (Branson, Mo.), head coach Steve Smith of Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) is now officially retired. His final team at the famous boarding school in the hills of Southwest Virginia finished 33-8. We take a look at Smith's career using raw numbers. Oak Hill Academy set the standard for independent programs that now are part of the National Interscholastic Basketball Conference (NIBC) or aspire to be.
.927 - Smith's career winning percentage at Oak Hill Academy. He finished with a won-loss mark of 1,232-97.
1 - Number of head coaching jobs. Smith started as an assistant at Oak Hill for the 1983-84 season before taking over for the 1985-86 season.
1 - Number of times the Warriors began the season unranked in the FAB 50/National Prep Poll, which began for the 1987-88 season. That came in 1988-89, when Oak Hill finished 22-2 and ranked No. 12.
1 - Number of GEICO National championships Oak Hill won. The Warriors captured the 2015-16 title when they finished No. 2 in the FAB 50 behind Chino Hills (Calif.).
2 - Home losses. In 39 seasons under Smith, the Warriors lost twice at home. In 1997 to Lamar Odom and Redemption Christian Academy (Troy, N.Y.) and again in 2018 to West Oaks Academy (Orlando, Fla.).
2 - National players of the year from Oak Hill Academy. Ron Mercer in 1995 (Naismith) and Brandon Jennings in 2008 (Mr. Basketball USA, Naismith, MaxPreps). No Oak Hill player has ever been named Gatorade National POY, USA Today National POY or honored as the Morgan Wooten National POY.
4 - The amount of college coaching assistant jobs Smith formally turned down. He probably would have fielded tons more if he didn't turn down those overtures in his early coaching career.
7 - National Prep Poll/FAB 50 National Championships (1993, 1994, 1999, 2001, 2004, 2012).
8 - Number of times Oak Hill Academy finished No. 2 in the FAB 50 (1990, 1992, 2000, 2002, 2005, 2009, 2015, 2016).
8 - National coach of the year honors (3 Naismith, 4 USA Today, 1992-1993 National Prep Poll/FAB 50).
8 - Number of 40-win seasons. Oak Hill finished 40-1 in 2005-06, 40-1 in 2006-07, 40-1 in 2008-09, 44-0 in 2011-12, 41-4 in 2013-14, 46-2 in 2014-15, 45-1 in 2015-16 and 44-2 in 2018-19.
9 - Mythical National Championships (1993, 1994, 1999, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2007 2012, 2016).
9 - The highest number of losses in a single season. That came in 2020-21 when the Warriors finished 21-9 and No. 23 in the FAB 50.
14 - Number of wins for Oak Hill at GEICO Nationals, which began in 2008-09. The Warriors are 14-11 all-time at the event (.560)
21 - Number of times Oak Hill Academy finished in the Top 5 in the FAB 50.
23 - The lowest final FAB 50 ranking during Smith's tenure, besides the 1987-88 season when the Warriors finished unranked in the first National Prep Poll (FAB 50 precursor). Oak Hill finished in this spot in 2012-13 (33-6) and in 2020-21 (21-9).
27 - Number of times Oak Hill Academy finished in the Top 10 in the FAB 50.
34 - Number of times Oak Hill Academy finished in the Top 25 in the FAB 50. The National Prep Poll (FAB 50 precursor) began in 1987-88 and only in that first season did the Warriors not finish in the Top 25.
34 - The number of McDonald's All-Americans Smith coached. The first one was New York native Chris Brooks (West Virginia) in 1986 and the last one was Chris Livingston (Kentucky) this season.
35 - Number of players taken in the NBA Draft who played at Oak Hill.
37 - The number of seasons he was the head coach.
39 - The number of season Smith was on the coaching staff.
46 - Program record for wins in a season. Oak Hill finished 46-2 in 2014-15 and fell to Montverde Academy (Fla.), 70-61, in the GEICO Nationals title game to finish No. 2 in the FAB 50. The 2015-16 team went 45-1 even though it lost All-American Harry Giles to a season-ending injury in the first minutes of the first game and also finished No. 2.
97 - Number of career losses. Smith finished his career with a won-loss record of 1,232-97. 17 of those losses (18%) came in his final two seasons.
225 - Number of D1 players who suited up for Steve Smith.
1,232 - Number of career wins. Smith finished his career with a won-loss record of 1,232-97. The national record for career wins is 1,333 by Robert Hughes, Sr. (1,333-265) at segregated I.M. Terrell and Dunbar, both in Ft. Worth, Texas. Morgan Wootten is second on the all-time wins list with 1,274 at DeMatha Catholic (Hyattsville, Md). Hughes and Wootten (1,274-192) are both in the Naismith Hall of Fame.
Ronnie Flores is the national Grassroots editor of Ballislife.com. He can be reached at [email protected]. Don't forget to follow him on Twitter: @RonMFlores